Opposition parties reject proposed amendments to Sindh LG law

KARACHI, September 13, 2026: All opposition parties in the Sindh Assembly have jointly rejected proposed amendments to the Sindh Local Government Act, describing the draft legislation as unconstitutional and an attempt to weaken elected local governments.

The parliamentary committee formed to review the amended Local Government Bill met at the Sindh Assembly on Saturday, with members of both the treasury and opposition benches in attendance.

The government side included Home Minister Ziaul Hassan Lanjar, Qasim Siraj Soomro, Jamil Soomro, Saleem Baloch and Sumita Afzal. The opposition was represented by MQM-P lawmakers Taha Ahmed and Iftikhar Alam, Jamaat-i-Islami’s Muhammad Farooq and PTI’s Shabbir Qureshi.

Speaking to the media after the meeting, opposition lawmakers rejected the proposed amendments, while Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Ziaul Hassan Lanjar defended the government’s proposals.

MQM-P’s Taha Ahmed rejected the proceedings of the special committee, alleging that the Pakistan Peoples Party had formed committees according to its own preferences. He accused the provincial government of undermining the local government system by withholding powers from elected representatives.

“Not transferring powers to the people makes the local government system useless,” he said, adding that his party represented the people of urban Sindh and rejected what he termed an insult to the people’s mandate.

Referring to Article 140-A of the Constitution, Mr Ahmed demanded that mayors be given full powers and urged the PPP to implement its commitment to devolve authority made in its 2008 manifesto.

He questioned why powers relating to the master plan, solid waste management and the water board were being taken away from the mayor.

He also warned that opposition parties could launch nationwide protests if the “controversial legislation” was not withdrawn.

MQM-P’s Iftikhar Alam also rejected the proposed legislation and raised concerns over the proposed appointment of administrators before local government elections. He said the provision could affect the holding of free and fair elections, particularly because the tenure of an administrator had not been clearly defined in case of a delay in elections.

Mr Alam described the special committee meeting as a “joke” and said no meaningful discussion had taken place on transferring powers to local governments in accordance with Supreme Court directives.

PTI’s Shabbir Qureshi said his party had rejected the government’s proposals, particularly the proposal to place unelected representatives in union councils.

Jamaat-i-Islami’s Muhammad Farooq said the existing law had already left local governments, including the mayor of Karachi, without adequate powers. He said his party had proposed that local government elections be held within 120 days without appointing administrators, but the proposal was not accepted.

He also opposed retaining oversight powers instead of devolving authority to the union council level, saying none of the proposals submitted by the opposition three months earlier had been accepted.

Defending the government’s position, Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Ziaul Hassan Lanjar said the provincial government had proposed a mechanism to be followed after the completion of the tenure of elected local government representatives.

“We have suggested that a letter be written to the Election Commission 120 days before the elections,” he said.