Deputy Opposition Leader in Punjab Assembly Muhammad Moeenuddin Riaz. Photo: SCREENGRAB
LAHORE:
Lawmakers of the opposition PTI in the Punjab Assembly filed a petition in the Lahore High Court (LHC) on Tuesday, challenging multiple provisions of the recently enacted Punjab Local Government Act (PLGA) 2025 as violative of the Constitution.
The petition, filed by Opposition Leader Moeenuddin Riaz, Hafiz Farhat Abbas and Ali Imtiaz, argues that the legislation, passed last month amid fierce opposition protests, undermines the autonomy of local governments.
The Punjab government has been named as the respondent in the case, which will be heard by Justice Sultan Tanvir, according to the petitioners’ counsel, Abuzar Salman Niazi.
The plea contends that Sections 15, 32, 25, 40, 55, 56 and 57 of the PLGA 2025 are “unconstitutional, unreasonable [and] illegitimate”, claiming they “brazenly and patently contravene” Articles 8, 9, 17, 32, and 140-A of the Constitution, relating to fundamental rights, freedom of association, promotion of local government institutions and constitutional status of local bodies.
According to the petition, “a careful reading of the PLGA, 2025, makes it crystal clear that the same is a restrictive law aimed at curtailing and limiting the powers of elected representatives of the local governments”.
The opposition MPAs argue that the Act, rather than empowering local bodies, consolidates authority in the provincial executive and violates the spirit of devolution envisioned by Article 140-A.
