• Eight-member body comprising four PPP lawmakers, three MQM-P and one from PTI
• Maiden meeting to be held next week
• Home Minister Lanjar says e-challans aim to promote traffic awareness, not collect money

KARACHI: Yielding to public pressure over the excessively high amount of heavy traffic fines, the provincial government on Friday formed a house committee comprising government and opposition lawmakers to review the amount of different violation under the e-ticketing system.

Addressing a thinly-attended house, Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Zia-ul-Hasan Lanjar, who also holds the portfolio of home affairs, told the house that an eight-member committee comprising members from both sides of the aisle formed to thoroughly review the fine amounts.

“If a revision in fine amounts is deemed necessary, the government will bring an amendment accordingly, as the public convenience and justice remain the government’s top priorities,” he said.

The home minister, who heads the committee, said that the maiden meeting of the house panel would be held on Dec 15.

He said that the committee would include Opposition Leader Ali Khurshidi, Taha Ahmed and Iftikhar Alam of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan, Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf-backed Sunni Itehad Council Shabbir Qureshi and Pakistan Peoples Party’s Asif Khan, Sadia Javed and Farooq Awan.

He said that the committee would review fines, public complaints and system transparency. “All stakeholders will be taken on board,” he assured the house.

Mr Lanjar said that aim of issuing e-challans was not to collect money through fines, but to promote traffic awareness.

“The e-challan system is being introduced in phases in Hyderabad and other districts to modernise traffic management,” he added.

Call attention notices

In a reply to a call attention notice, given by MQM-P member Qurat-ul-Ain Khan, University and Board Minister Ismail Rahoo said that there were only 54 point buses for over 39,000 students of Karachi University and 50 point buses for over 25,000 students of Sindh University, which were not sufficient to cater to the large number of students.

He said that universities were autonomous institutions and were not directly under the provincial government, which had allocated Rs41 billion for them this year. “It is up to the universities to decide where to spend the money,” he said, adding that Rs3.9 billion was given to Karachi University.

Responding to a call attention notice by MQM-P’s Naseer Ahmed regarding illegal water connections in his constituency, Parliamentary Secretary for Local Government Qasim Siraj Soomro said that the matter would be taken up at a meeting with the district administration next week for solution of the issue.

PPP’s Ghulam Qadir Chandio said in his call attention notice that Hyderabad Electric Supply Company (HESCO) was conducting raids at night with Rangers to recover bills and people were being detained for non-payment of bills.

Speaker Syed Awais Qadir Shah ruled that a committee of the house had been formed on this issue.

He directed House Committee Chairman Fayyaz Bhatt and the assembly secretary to convene a meeting on the issue next week.

Sujawal incident

Opposition Leader Ali Khurshidi said on a point of order that a sad incident took place in the open court on Thursday in Sujawal where an elderly person was beaten in the presence of a minister and police officers.

Senior Minister Sharjeel Memon termed the incident sad and unfortunate and added that the elderly man had a land dispute and was manhandled by his opponent party.

He said that the police timely brought the situation under control and there was no loss of life. “The incident is being investigated and whoever is found responsible will not escape punishment,” he assured the house.

Later, the house was adjourned to Monday.

Published in Dawn, December 13th, 2025