LAHORE, June 19: The treasury and the opposition in the Punjab Assembly will hold talks to run the house proceedings in accordance with parliamentary norms to facilitate the masses.

The opposition has been boycotting the proceedings since it took up debate on budget on Tuesday to protest against the controversial LFO and uniform of the president.

Calling the parleys a welcome step, the opposition on Thursday did not disrupt proceedings of the house by raising slogans against the LFO, but walked out of the house peacefully.

In their preliminary round of talks, both the sides decided to meet again on Friday morning (today) after consulting their respective parties.

Law minister Raja Muhammad Basharat, food minister Chaudhry Muhammad Iqbal and education minister Imran Masood represented the government while the opposition was represented by its leader Qasim Zia, deputy Rana Sanaullah and MMA’s parliamentary leader Chaudhry Asghar Gujjar.

Briefing reporters, the ‘dialogue’ committee hoped that the Friday’s talks would give some positive results.

The opposition leaders made it clear that they would continue boycotting proceedings of the house until the talks ended on a happy note. They, however, vowed not to raise slogans in the house.

Later when Mr Gujjar and Ehsanullah Waqas entered the house to inform other members about the outcome of Thursday’s parleys, the PML-Q members welcomed them by thumping their desks.

Mr Gujjar told the house that both the sides had agreed to settle mutual disputes through talks and hoped that a positive result was expected by tomorrow.

The law minister extended an invitation for talks on a point of order immediately after proceedings of the house started.

Welcoming the move, the opposition suggested that the provincial assembly should adopt a unanimous resolution recommending the federal government to discuss the LFO’s clauses that undermined the provincial autonomy and recontinue talks with the joint opposition in the National Assembly.

Rana Sanaullah proposed that the proceedings should be adjourned for 15 minutes for holding talks. But Raja Basharat opposed it, saying the house should continue its proceedings and representatives of the treasury and the opposition could hold parleys concurrently.