The Senate Standing Committee on Finance and Revenue on Wednesday summoned the ministers for law and finance to ascertain their views on whether the caretaker government had the authority to enact legislation.

The summons were issued as the committee, headed by Senator Saleem Mandviwalla, deliberated on bills, with a committee member insisting that the caretaker government lacked the authority to legislate.

The committee was reviewing two proposed bills, namely the Deposit Protection Corporation (Amendment) Bill 2024 and the Banking Companies (Amendment) Bill 2024, both referred to it by the upper house for vetting.

Soon after the committee took up the bills for a discussion, Senator Sadia Abbasi said that the caretaker government lacked the authority to engage in legislation.

“What is the stance of the law ministry on this matter?” committee head Mandiwalla enquired.

In response, Jam Muhammad Aslam, law ministry’s additional draftsman, explained that a designated minister was “incharge in the upper house during the presentation of a bill.”

“The caretaker government has the authority to legislate,” the ministry official said.

He further mentioned the existence of a relevant committee capable of providing suggestions on the matter, emphasising that neither the Constitution nor the rules posed any hindrance to such proceedings.

At this, Senator Abbasi asked, “How can unelected individuals introduce legislation in parliament?”

Following a brief discussion, the committee decided to summon the ministers for law and finance in the upcoming hearing to seek their perspectives on the issue.

In November last year, the Senate members had barred caretaker Information Minister Murtaza Solangi’s attempt to move the Motion Picture (Amendment) Bill in the Senate, calling it “a transgression of his constitutional domain”.

At the time, PPP Senator Mian Raza Rabbani had stressed that caretaker governments did not have the power to make laws.

“This was the first time in the parliamentary history a caretaker government has brought a bill in the Senate,” the senator had said.

He had also referred to Section 230 of the Elections Act, under which the caretakers only tend to day-to-day matters necessary to run the government.