Punjab Finance Minister Mujtaba Shujaur Rehman strongly defended the provincial budget and criticised the opposition during the concluding budget debate. He said the opposition leader spent five days discussing the budget without understanding key allocations. The remarks came as the government highlighted its fiscal performance and welfare spending plans for the 2026-27 financial year.
Addressing the Punjab Assembly, the minister said the government achieved strong financial results during the current fiscal year. He stated that 93 percent of the development budget was utilised, while 99 percent of the revenue target was achieved. Rehman argued that these figures reflected effective governance and efficient management of public resources.
Highlighting development priorities, the minister announced Rs556 billion for 387 schemes in South Punjab and Rs38 billion for projects in the Katcha riverine areas. He also detailed welfare allocations, including Rs29 billion for the Health Card programme, Rs12.5 billion for the Kisan Card initiative, and Rs5 billion for the Dhee Rani Programme. He clarified that the Health Card scheme had not been discontinued but redesigned to improve efficiency.
Responding to corruption allegations from the opposition, Rehman dismissed the claims as baseless. He said international assessments showed Pakistan’s standing on corruption indicators had improved over the past two years. The minister also argued that the country’s economy would have been stronger if previous governments led by Nawaz Sharif had completed their terms without interruption.
Turning to politics, Rehman said the current government had not pursued politically motivated cases against its opponents. Referring to the May 9 unrest, he stated that the opposition’s political challenges would persist unless it acknowledged and apologised for the incidents. He concluded by urging political rivals to take responsibility for their actions while the government focused on development and public welfare.