Punjab Assembly | Pakistan

LAHORE: Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz and Punjab Assembly Speaker Malik Muhammad Ahmad Khan had a second one-on-one meeting in a week over the matters concerning the provincial legislature. In Wednesday’s meeting, CM Maryam was particular about “inclusive legislation.” She said it should be ensured that both treasury and opposition members be consulted in the legislative process. Khan said the CM’s direction would be followed and the proceedings of the Punjab Assembly would be held through mutual coordination. Both also discussed legislative matters related to prison reforms and the controversial bill – the Punjab Control of Habitual Offenders and Anti-Social Behaviour Bill, 2026. Speaker Khan praised the chief minister for presenting what he termed an outstanding policy at the National Paigham-i-Aman Committee. He also lauded the launch of the “Apna Khet, Apna Rozgar” scheme and congratulated the chief minister on the balloting held under the initiative. The chief minister described the “Apna Khet, Apna Rozgar...

The agenda for the upcoming Punjab Assembly budget session has been finalized, with proceedings set to commence on June 16 at 2 pm.

LAHORE: Punjab Assembly’s Standing Committee on Local Government and Community Development approved the Child Marriage Restraint Bill 2026 on Monday, even as some members, including the panel’s chairperson, expressed reservations regarding the legislation. The meeting was chaired by PML-N MPA Pir Ashraf Rasool, and members of the Women Parliamentary Caucus were also invited to witness its proceedings. The bill discussed during the meeting sets 18 years as the minimum legal age for marriage for both boys and girls in Punjab. Previously, the minimum legal age for marriage in Punjab was 18 years for men and 16 years for women under the Punjab Child Marriage Restraint Act, 1929. That changed with the promulgation of the Child Marriage Restraint Bill 2026 as an ordinance by Punjab Governor Saleem Haider in February. The ordinance, however, will lapse in May — 90 days after its promulgation — and hence, the legislation needs the Punjab Assembly’s approval to remain in effect. After being passed by the standing comm...

LAHORE: In a move to dismantle colonial-era legal barriers, a bill was submitted in the Punjab Assembly’s Standing Committee on Minority Affairs on Thursday, seeking a raise in the minimum marriage age of Christians to 18. This bill seeks to resolve decades of hurdles in documentation that have left many Christian marriages unrecognised by union councils and the National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra). The proposed ‘Christian Marriage Act Bill, 2026’ was submitted as a private member bill by Falbus Christopher, the chairman of the Standing Committee on Minority Affairs. Under the bill, the age of marriage — previously set at 16 years for boys and 13 years for girls — will be standardised to 18 years. Furthermore, the bill mandates that both the bride and groom must be Christian for the marriage to be solemnised under this specific act, shifting from the current law, which only requires one party to be of the Christian faith. One of the most significant practical changes involved the formal integr...

A resolution has been introduced in the Punjab Assembly proposing the nomination of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, and Field Marshal Asim Munir for the Nobel Peace Prize.

LAHORE: A high-level committee of the Punjab Assembly has declared that a controversial colonial-era law effectively criminalises poverty and must be abolished, it emerged on Monday. The Committee on Law Reforms and Delegated Legislation met on Monday at the Punjab Assembly under the chairmanship of Speaker Malik Muhammad Ahmad Khan, taking up critical issues ranging from outdated criminal laws to police accountability. A major highlight of the sitting was the review of Section 55(1)(b) of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1898, which allows police to arrest individuals without warrant if they have “no ostensible means of subsistence.” The committee described the provision as an outdated colonial relic that criminalised poverty instead of criminal conduct, and conflicted with fundamental constitutional rights. A detailed reform proposal recommends complete omission of this clause, along with related provisions, to prevent misuse. The proposed reforms also suggest tightening another clause, Section 55(1)(c), tha...

LAHORE: A legislative bill seeking five years in prison for the perpetrators of forced conversions was formally submitted to the Punjab Assembly on Tuesday. Chairman of the Standing Committee on Minority Affairs, Falbous Christopher, submitted the Punjab Protection of the Rights of Religious Minorities Bill 2026. The bill will now be referred to the Standing Committee on Minority Affairs, where it will be discussed and reviewed. After this process, the bill can be tabled in the provincial assembly. Under the proposed bill, a copy of which is available with Dawn, perpetrators of forced conversion could face up to five years in prison as it formally defines forced conversion as a criminal offence. According to the bill, whoever “compels or attempts to compel” a person belonging to a religious minority with threats, undue influence and coercion to change their religion “shall be punishable with imprisonment which may extend to five years and with fine”. Voluntary conversions without such pressure were excluded. ...

LAHORE - The purchase of a luxury aircraft by the Punjab government echoed strongly in the Punjab Assembly on Wednesday, as the opposition members, alongwith the ruling coalition partner PPP, raised sharp questions over the necessity and cost of the plane reportedly bought for Rs11 billion.

Punjab Information Minister Azma Bokhari on Tuesday staged a walkout during a Punjab Assembly session in solidarity with journalists who have been boycotting the provincial legislature over alleged “ill-treatment” during Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi’s visit to the assembly. During his three-day visit to Lahore over the weekend, the KP chief minister had given an address at the Punjab Assembly to opposition MPAs last week. However, the visit was marred by altercations between members of his entourage and security officials, while heated exchanges between PTI leaders and journalists were also witnessed. Speaking during the session today, Bokhari staged a walkout to show solidarity with journalists from the Punjab Assembly’s press gallery, who she said were “beaten and pushed around” by people accompanying the KP CM. During yesterday’s assembly session, a statement by opposition member Col. (retd) Shoaib Amir about the press gallery, calling them “sellouts”, also sparked outrage. “The whole wo...

Punjab Assembly Speaker Malik Muhammad Ahmad Khan on Monday announced that an inquiry conducted into the chaos that marred the arrival of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi to the provinicial legislature’s building over the weekend would be sent to the law enforcement agencies. During his three-day visit to Lahore over the weekend, the KP chief minister had given an address at the Punjab Assembly to opposition MPAs on Friday. However, the visit was marred by altercations between members of his entourage and security officials, while heated exchanges between PTI leaders and journalists were also witnessed. Addressing the incident at a press conference in Lahore today, Khan said that the report on the unrest was being sent to the law enforcement agencies, which would conduct an independent investigation into the incident. He said that he had informed the KP chief minister that a special permit was required to enter the assembly premises, and that in the absence of any other documentation, “at least...

A resolution has been presented in the Punjab Assembly proposing a reduction in the minimum age for obtaining a driving licence from 18 to 16 years.

LAHORE - A Punjab Assembly session summoned on opposition’s requisition witnessed a day of turmoil which saw fiery speeches, slogan-chanting, walkouts and finally an indefinite adjournment after the House failed to meet the quorum.

LAHORE - Unlike the National Assembly where the PML-N has secured a simple majority after securing six national seats in Sunday’s by-election, an equal number of provincial seats grabbed by the ruling party makes no real difference to its position in the Punjab Assembly.

Amid loud protests and uproar from the opposition benches, the Punjab Assembly on Monday passed the Punjab Local Government Bill 2025.

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) lawmakers have resigned from all standing committees of the Punjab Assembly, relinquishing both their memberships and chairmanships.

ISLAMABAD - Incarcerated Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan directed its party’s lawmakers to quit the standing committees of the Punjab Assembly, interim party chairman Gohar Ali Khan said on Thursday.

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan has directed all party members to immediately resign from their positions in the Punjab Assembly’s standing committees, PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan announced on Thursday.

PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan said on Thursday that party founder Imran Khan has ordered the party’s lawmakers to resign from the chairmanships and memberships of standing committees in the Punjab Assembly. In August, Imran had said the party should not go into by-elections triggered by the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) disqualifying a large number of PTI members and leaders in relation to their involvement in the May 9, 2023, riots and that its lawmakers should leave all parliamentary standing committees, including the Public Accounts Committee (PAC). PTI lawmakers subsequently began resigning from the membership of parliamentary committees and also Senate standing committees. Whether Punjab lawmakers would do so was not decided at the time. However, speaking to the media today outside Adiala Jail after meeting Imran, Barrister Gohar said: “Khan has issued a direction regarding Punjab. We have 107 MPAs in Punjab and we have around 14 standing committees. Khan has also issued the directive for...

An amendment bill has been introduced in the Punjab Assembly to bring further clarity to laws governing the division of property.

LAHORE - Just weeks after the Treasury and Opposition agreed on a code of conduct for maintaining decorum during assembly proceedings, chaos erupted once again in the Punjab Assembly on Monday.