ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) on Friday blocked parliamentary proceedings on two government bills seeking amendments to natural gas revenue mechanisms, amid growing tensions within the ruling coalition over the recent Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) elections, judicial appointments and proposals for the creation of new provinces.
The development came during a meeting of the National Assembly Standing Committee on Petroleum, chaired by PPP lawmaker Syed Mustafa Mehmood, where former federal minister Syed Naveed Qamar asked the committee at the outset not to take up the Natural Gas (Development Surcharge) Amendment Bill and the Gas Infrastructure Development Cess (GIDC) Amendment Bill.
The committee subsequently deferred consideration of both bills.
GIDC funds remain largely unutilised
The Petroleum Division had proposed amendments to the GIDC law to broaden the utilisation of GIDC funds for the development of strategic oil and gas reserves.
Under the existing framework, the funds are specifically linked to the development of the Pakistan-Iran, Turkmenistan-Pakistan and cross-country gas pipeline projects.
Around Rs295 billion in GIDC funds remains unutilised in the public kitty, while more than Rs400 billion collected by fertiliser companies from consumers remains outside the national exchequer due to legal complications.
PPP demands action on reservations
Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Naveed Qamar said the PPP was not formally a coalition partner but had been supporting the government, adding that such support could not continue indefinitely without addressing the party’s concerns.
He said the PPP had conveyed several reservations to the government, including issues related to the AJK elections, appointment of judges and other matters, but had yet to see tangible progress.
“The government needs to resolve these issues and take steps,” Qamar said, indicating that the PPP would not support government legislation until concrete progress was made.
He also alleged that the government had attempted to push a bill through the National Assembly’s Interior Committee a day earlier.
Qamar said the Islamabad Local Government Bill was unacceptable to the PPP in its existing form and that the party had already submitted a dissenting note.
Committee questions cheap gas for fertiliser sector
During the petroleum committee meeting, Chairman Mustafa Mehmood questioned the provision of subsidised or cheap gas to fertiliser companies if the resulting benefit was not being passed on to farmers.
Following the discussion, the committee decided to defer both the GIDC and Natural Gas Development Surcharge amendment bills, effectively preventing their immediate parliamentary progress.
The move highlights the growing political differences between the PPP and the government, with the party signalling that its support for government legislation will increasingly depend on progress on issues it has raised with the ruling coalition.
Story by Khaleeq Kiani
