The Punjab Assembly on Thursday approved a tax-free budget of Rs5.335 trillion for the fiscal year 2025-26, maintaining the existing tax structure and introducing no new taxes. The Finance Bill 2025-26 was also passed, with no changes in property tax, transport tax, or levies on industries, agriculture, health, and education.
During the session chaired by Speaker Malik Muhammad Ahmad Khan, the Assembly approved Rs3,667.71 billion worth of grants for 36 departments, while five demands totaling Rs638.29 billion had already been approved a day earlier, on June 25. These allocations will take effect from July 1, 2025.
The opposition’s cut motions—targeting allocations for police, education, health, agriculture, and public health—were rejected by majority vote.
Key allocations include Rs462 billion for pensions, Rs910 billion for development projects, Rs200.10 billion for police, Rs258.97 billion for health services, Rs137.53 billion for education, Rs26.53 billion for agriculture, and Rs15.16 billion for public health.Â
Other approved grants include Rs120 billion for road and bridge construction, Rs161 billion for government buildings, Rs27 billion for jails, Rs1 billion for civil defence, Rs66 billion for agricultural loans, Rs18.22 billion for industrial development, and Rs37.96 billion for irrigation.
Grants for registration, stamps, motor vehicles, and excise duties were also passed. Additionally, Rs19 billion was allocated for veterinary services and Rs1.6 billion for fisheries.
Among the approved grants, Rs1,036.96 billion was allocated under “miscellaneous expenditures,” which drew criticism from opposition lawmakers who questioned transparency. They argued this category accounted for 20% of the total budget.Â
Finance Minister Mian Mujtaba Shujaur Rehman clarified that this allocation includes funding for various authorities, the Pay and Pension Fund, and initiatives related to Women Development, Baitul Maal, and Zakat and Ushr.
The Assembly also approved Rs125.23 billion for general administration and Rs9.54 billion for housing and physical planning, despite similar objections from the opposition.
Four bills were introduced by Finance Minister Mujtaba Shujaur Rehman, including:
– Punjab Autism School and Resource Centre Bill 2025
– Urban Immovable Property Tax (Amendment) Bill 2025
– Essential Commodities Price Control (Amendment) Bill 2025
– Punjab Labour Courts Bill 2025
All four bills were referred to relevant standing committees with instructions to submit reports within two months.
During the proceedings, government MPA Saeed Akbar Nawani pointed out duplicate serial numbers (35 and 41) in the grant demands and suggested merging them. The finance minister acknowledged the issue, stating that while this practice had existed for years, a review would be conducted to determine if a technical adjustment could be made.
The budget was approved after a five-day general discussion in the Assembly.
