Rs310 | Pakistan

The coalition government in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) on Wednesday unveiled a Rs310.2 billion deficit-free budget for the fiscal year 2025-26, which was approved by the Legislative Assembly amid a boycott by the opposition. Earlier today, the budget session was delayed by over two hours after five opposition members — four from the PTI and one from the Jammu Kashmir People’s Party (JKPP) — staged a sit-in at the entrance of the assembly hall, protesting what they described as the government’s attempt to “bulldoze the budget”. Four to five cabinet members approached the opposition to convince them to end their protest and voice their concerns inside the hall, but they were told that verbal assurances aside, the government’s “ill-will” was evident from the agenda of the budget session. The agenda stated that after the presentation of the revised budget for 2024-25 and the estimated budget for 2025-26, the finance minister would move a motion for suspension of Rules 127, 128, 129, and 131 of the Rules of Proc...