Govt asked to rein in spy agencies

ISLAMABAD - Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani on Thursday assured the National Assembly of doing ‘whatever possible’ on the issue of POL prices hike.Speaking on the floor of the house, which unanimously rejected the latest increase in the prices of petroleum products by adopting a resolution, Gilani said the government would consider the proposals of any parliamentary committee on the subject.Meanwhile, Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan asked the premier to ‘rein in the spy agencies’ and demanded formation of a court of inquiry, comprising parliamentarians and judges, for a thorough probe into the killing of missing persons.Earlier, the house had unanimously adopted a resolution presented by PML-N Deputy Secretary-General Ahsan Iqbal, which sought withdrawal of recent hike in petroleum products prices.The resolution read: “The government should consider withdrawal of increase in price of petroleum products immediately in the interest of people of Pakistan as it will have serious impact on common man by increasing inflation in the country and a committee of the house may be made to make recommendation within one week.”On the killing of missing persons, Gilani said: “All the institutions are answerable to the Parliament. All the institutions require to work within their parameters. The matter is sub judice; therefore, let the court decide this case.”He also advised the opposition to refrain from demanding a parliamentary committee to look into the matter, which is being considered by the court.About the proposed 20th constitutional amendment, he said the government had done an unprecedented job to strength the institutions in the country and would consider the suggestions of the opposition on the issue.In response to a call-attention notice of the POL pricing, Minister for Petroleum and Natural Resources Dr Asim Hussain said it was Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (Ogra), and not his ministry, which dealt with the matter.Earlier, Chaudhry Nisar, while speaking on a point of order, said the PML-N had no objection on the 20th amendment, but it was a sheer negligence and inability of the incumbent government to delay the reconstitution of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) in the light of 18th Amendment.He said the opposition would not support the amendment till the matters regarding the appointment of an independent election commission and caretaker setup were not resolved.Raising the issue of missing persons, he said 11 persons were acquitted from different courts but later kidnapped by a spy agency.“Dead bodies of four were found on roads as they were badly tortured. If we can’t stop these activities, we should not hold these seats,” he said, adding that the parliamentarians should express solidarity with the families of missing persons on the next hearing of the case.“I will go to express solidarity with the families of missing persons on the next hearing of the case. Silence is not an option, as it would tantamount to committing a sin,” he said, adding that the head of the spy agency should be called in the house on the matter.“I want to say to the army chief. It is a national army not a mafia. Such kind of activities will tarnish the image of Pakistan Army,” he remarked.About recent increase in the prices of POL prices, Nisar severely criticised the PPP-led government’s policy of imposing taxes. “What is this Petroleum Development Levy? It’s a jaga (forced) tax on people of country,” he said, as called for immediate reversal of the move.Similarly, PML-N legislator Khawaja Saad Rafiq termed the killing of four persons as extra judicial murder.Responding to a point of order raised by Abdul Qadir Khanzada of MQM regarding facilities for former parliamentarians, Gilani said he had approved the recommendations on the subject and sent these to the Ministry of Law and Justice.In response to call-attention notice about non-filing of income tax return by more than 42 per cent taxpayers for the year 2011, Finance Minister Dr Hafeez Shaikh informed the house that the FBR has collected Rs 972 billion as tax during the last seven months, while the figures were Rs 1,558 billion for the previous financial year.“The filing of income tax returns would be made mandatory for all NTN holders from new financial year,” he said, adding that out of a total of 3.3 million registered tax payers, only 13.8 million people had filed the tax returns in 2011.