LAHORE, Jan 11: Punjab police's crime-fighting capacity is being seriously affected by the federal government's consistent refusal to allow them use of the equipment required for locating cell phones used in various heinous offences, the provincial assembly was told on Tuesday.

Responding to a query by treasury MPA Mian Naseer Ahmed, the law minister informed the house the provincial government had approached the centre for provision of the equipment but the request was not granted.

Rana Sana said in a detailed meeting on the issue, held some three months back, interior minister Rehman Malik had assured Punjab representatives the decision regarding provision of the sensitive system to police would be reviewed. But, the promise was yet to materialize, he added.

Owing to non-availability of the system, Rana Sana said, the police department was facing problems in detecting criminals and was failing to deliver.

Deputy Speaker Rana Mashhud, who was holding the chair, wondered why the federation was reluctant to grant permission to Punjab police to use the equipment while in this high-tech era people could find whereabouts of a desired person through social networking website Facebook.

Supporting the demand for the equipment, various MPAs, however, sought an assurance that after the Punjab police got the facility public privacy would be safeguarded.

Replying to a query by Unification Bloc's Ayesha Javed, the law minister said the government had enacted strict laws to curb incidents of acid throwing and burning of women. These crimes, he said, were being registered under the Anti-terrorism Act to ensure exemplary punishment to the culprits.

He said after registration of such a case, the SHO concerned could be held responsible for failing to arrest the accused within seven days.

The law minister declined to comment on the query by Naveed Anjum regarding 'illegal' possession of Government Gulberg High School's land allegedly by former MNA and Naib district nazim Farooq Amjad Mir, saying the matter was sub judice. PUNJAB HOUSE:

Complaining they were being denied accommodation in the Punjab House, Islamabad, various members sought details about occupancy of the provincial government's residential facility in the federal capital.

Unification Bloc's Sheikh Alauddin said the house should be informed in detail that who had been using the facility on whose behalf and for how long while the MPAs were being denied accommodation there.

PPP senior parliamentarian Nazim Shah drew the chair's attention towards the fact that booking for rooms at the Punjab House was not being done while their rent was also very high.

Rana Sana said the rent was enhanced to discourage the practice of getting booked the Punjab House rooms for months. He admitted the rooms remained booked in the name of MPAs or ministers for a period of even two years.

PML-Q MPA Seemal Kamran complained she was denied the lodging facility for being an opposition member but the accommodation was provided to her when she approached the authorities concerned through a colleague on the treasury benches. Protesting the discriminatory treatment, she demanded the chair take a notice of it.

The chair formed a special committee to probe the matter.

Nazim Shah also complained he had to travel 360 kilometers to attend the house proceedings but the allowance paid to him was only Rs5 per kilometer.

The chair assured the MPA the matter would be looked into.

Sheikh Alauddin also sought The Mall should be declared a 'no-protest zone' to maintain sanctity of the institutions like Punjab Assembly as protesters had been trespassing on its premises and vandalizing the vehicles parked there.

By Amjad Mahmood