ISLAMABAD
\nForeign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi has said that making the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) independent is in line with economic responsibility. The foreign minister said this while speaking at the floor of the Upper House of the Parliament on Tuesday.
\nHe maintained that the SBP bill which made the bank autonomous, has caused conflict and that he wants to put forth the government\u2019s reasoning for backing the bill. \u201cThe prime minister has the power to appoint board members of the institution, and the impression that the institution has been enslaved is wrong,\u201d Qureshi said. He emphasised that the SBP was and will remain a subject to the Senate.
\nQureshi lashed out at the Leader of the Opposition in the Senate Yousaf Raza Gilani and called him a \u201ccompromised leader\u201d and a \u201csell-out\u201d. He issued the statement while speaking in the Senate after Gillani, in his Senate speech on Monday, had said he was being accused by \u201cturncoats\u201d \u2014 in an apparent reference to FM Qureshi \u2014 of helping the government pass the State Bank of Pakistan (Amendment) Bill. During the January 28 session, when the SBP bill was passed, 12 members were absent, including Gillani and seven other members of the Opposition, two from the government, and two from independent candidate Dilawar Khan\u2019s group. Taking a jibe at Gillani for his absence, federal ministers and government officials thanked him for \u201chelping\u201d the Centre pass the crucial SBP bill. In response, the PPP leader announced his resignation from office on Monday.
\nQureshi said Gillani \u201clies\u201d, and he will remain \u201cglued\u201d to the office of the leader of the Opposition. \u201cHis resignation is nothing but a mere drama\u201d. The foreign minister said the opposition leader should explain his absence from the Upper House of the Parliament, as his voters were not satisfied with his clarification.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe has stated that the bill was [added to the agenda overnight]. How could the opposition leader be so naive and unaware?\u201d the foreign minister said.<\/p>\n
Commenting on the SBP bill, the foreign minister said it is not right to say that the central bank had been enslaved by foreign bodies. \u201cThe State Bank is an autonomous institution.\u201d<\/p>\n
Talking to journalists after the Senate session, Gillani said he did not expect Qureshi to \u201cstoop so low\u201d and termed the foreign minister\u2019s speech against him a \u201ccontempt of the Senate\u201d. He lashed out at FM Qureshi, saying that he had requested to give a policy statement.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut instead of a policy statement, he started a tirade against me. The foreign minister has lowered his ethical standards without any reason. I did not expect him to stoop so low,\u201d the PPP leader added.<\/p>\n
The Senate session was adjourned till Friday. TLTP<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
ISLAMABAD Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi has said that making the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) independent is in line with economic responsibility. The foreign minister said this while speaking at the floor of the Upper House of the Parliament on Tuesday. He maintained that the SBP bill which made the bank autonomous, has caused […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-242018","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-top-news"},"yoast_head":"\n