Protest against flour crisis plagues Senate working.

ISLAMABAD -- The oppositions on Monday protested in the Senate over PTI-led government's 'lacklustre and poor response', blaming it for the recent flour crisis and the rising prices of essential commodities and termed the remarks of a federal minister on the issue tantamount to making mockery of the poor.

The opposition parties, including Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz and Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) staged a token walkout from the house on private members' day after the treasury benches informed the house that Federal Minister for National Food Security Makhdoom Khusro Bakhtiar could not show up in the house and would brief it today (Tuesday).

The lawmakers also criticised the policy of the government to export wheat, during current fiscal year, without making exact estimates about the demand and supply of the crop what they said that it had no estimates in hand that the country itself needed more wheat this year.

Senate Chairman Sadiq Sanjrani referred the matter to the Senate Standing Committee on National Food Security with the ruling that the committee should come up with a detailed report in the house. He also sought reports from the all provincial secretaries on the flour crisis and directed the food minister to brief the house today.

The remarks of Federal Minister for Railways Sheikh Rasheed Ahmad came under condemnation first from the Jamaat-e-Islami Ameer Senator Sirajul Haq who said that the minister with his public statement made a mockery of the poor. 'Are these people are cruel,' he added. Siraj regretted that Pakistan was an agriculture country and the eighth-largest wheat producing country in the world and added: 'Despite this, the people are desperate for roti [bread].'

The minister in a statement had said that the recent shortage of wheat and flour in the country and the reason of exorbitant prices of the staple food were because people eat more breads (rotis) during two months of winter season-November and December.

PML-N Senator Javed Abbasi, taking part in the debate, also showed his surprise that Pakistan despite being an agriculture country and self-sufficient in wheat production was facing flour crisis. He said that leathery of the government on the issue was clear and a blame game among the provinces and the centre was underway on the issue. 'Provinces are saying that they did not get their required quota of wheat, while the federal government says the otherwise.' He also brought attention of the house towards...