Meeting of the Senate Committee on Rules of Procedure and Privileges was held today under the Chairmanship of Senator Muhammad Tahir Bizinjo

From: Our Correspondent.

Islamabad: Meeting of the Senate Committee on Rules of Procedure and Privileges was held today under the Chairmanship of Senator Muhammad Tahir Bizinjo here at the Parliament House. Senator Bahramand Khan Tangi moved a Privilege Motion against the Secretary of the Ministry of Interior, Government of Pakistan, Islamabad, who refused to issue an arms license to him, contradicting the government’s policy to issue arms licenses to parliamentarians. Senator Tangi expressed that the Secretary of the Interior, instead of facilitating him, denied the license, even for personal use, and insisted on the recently imposed ban. He asserted that the Secretary’s denial amounted to a breach of privilege not only for him but for all parliamentarians.In the meeting, the ministry contended that Senator Bahramand Khan Tangi had been granted approval for a 01xPB arms license and was required to approach Nadra for biometric verification. However, he neither approached Nadra nor submitted his demand note against the weapon within the prescribed six-month period. It was communicated that he submitted a request for an extension of the validity period. Still, it was clarified that after the expiry of ninety days but before the lapse of six months, the license could be processed with a penalty payment of one thousand rupees for every month. Failure to comply would result in the withdrawal of approval by the competent authority. The ministry also mentioned that the issuance of PB licenses was banned on December 31, and a revised policy on the prohibited board is underway. Despite this, the committee recommended the swift resolution of the matter and suggested exempting parliamentarians from the ban. Earlier in the meeting, matters related to a privilege motion against the Director-General of the Civil Aviation Authority (DGCAA) and irregularities in the recruitment process in PSQCA, as well as the use of derogatory remarks towards the committee, were deferred due to the absence of the movers. The meeting was attended by Senator Professor Sajid Mir, Irfan Siddiqui, Zarqa Suharwardy Taimur and Senator Bahramand Khan Tangi. Representatives of the attached departments were also in attendance.