Under the direction of Qaiser Ahmed Shiekh, the National Assembly Standing Committee on Finance and Revenue met today.

After only a brief discussion, the committee decided to refer the issue of Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s election funding back to Parliament because the Supreme Court’s deadline for the disbursement of Rs. 21 billion for the elections is today.

Azam Nazeer Tarar, the law minister, told reporters following the committee meeting that the committee resolved to bring the issue before the parliament for final approval.

State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) and the Finance Division, according to Minister of State for Finance and Revenue Aisha Ghaus Pasha, are not authorised to discharge monies from the Federal Consolidated Fund (FCF) without parliamentary authorization.

She reiterated her position, saying that while the SBP may allot the money, it couldn’t be used unless Parliament approved it. “No measure or budget has any legal foundation without the consent of Parliament. As a result, we are now referring the whole situation to the Parliament. Because it is stated in the constitution, the Parliament is ultimate for us, the woman said.

According to one committee member, the federal government has the option to allocate funding, and elections in Punjab would be comparable to damaging the nation.

It is worth noting that the Supreme Court of Pakistan directed the SBP on Friday to provide Rs. 21 billion for the next provincial elections.

The Supreme Court had previously directed that Rs. 21 billion be released to the Election Commission of Pakistan by April 10. On April 14, after the government failed to comply with the decision, the Supreme Court asked the central bank to arrange the money from the FCF.