Senate rejects cut in its budget as unconstitutional.

Byline: Iftikhar A. KhanUpdated

ISLAMABAD -- The Senate on Wednesday rejected a cut of around Rs7 million in its budget as an unconstitutional move and urged the government to reverse the decision.

The house through a voice vote approved an amendment to the recommendations of the Senate's finance committee on finance bill, asking the government to restore the original budget passed by the panel. The amendment was moved by chairman of the Senate's standing committee on finance, Farooq H. Naek and was approved by the house for incorporation in the set of recommendations prepared by the committee.

The issue was first raised in the house by Barrister Mohammad Ali Saif of the MQM, who said the government had no jurisdiction to slash the budget of Senate.

Senator Javed Abbasi of PML-N termed the move an attempt against supremacy of parliament and referred to Article 8 of the constitution, which deals with expenditure charged upon federal consolidated fund. He said the article specifically mentions the administrative expenses including the renumerations of the staff of the two houses of the parliament.

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Mr Naek referred to Article 88, which reads 'the expenditure of the National Assembly and the Senate within authorised appropriations shall be controlled by the National Assembly or, as the case may be, the Senate acting on the advice of its Finance Committee'.

He said the finance committee thus becomes a constitutional committee and the executive can in no way override its decisions. He said the decision to slash the Senate's budget was in total violation of the constitution.

Mr Naek later presented before the house the report of the standing committee on the proposals for making recommendations on the Finance Bill, 22, containing the Annual Budget Statement, which was unanimously adopted by the house.

The chairman of the Senate standing committee on law and justice, Javed Abbasi presented before the house reports of the committee on two constitution amendment bills.

One of the bills seeks to increase number of seats for Balochistan in national and provincial assemblies (Articles 5 and 6) and the other seeking an end to the presidential power to pardon sentences in...