Punjab restricts ostentatious wedding functions

LAHORE: The Punjab Assembly on Thursday passed six laws, including one that regulates marriage functions, to ensure the objectives of austerity and simplicity.

The law titled the Punjab Marriage Functions Act 2016 directs that only one dish should be served in wedding functions and other related ceremonies, which includes one dish comprising a meat curry and one dish of rice, along with bread, a sweet dish, salad and hot or cold beverages.

The law binds that all wedding functions should be concluded before 10pm, bans illumination and decorations on streets, parks and adjoining areas of the house, hotel or wedding hall where the function is being held, bans use of firecrackers, explosives or firearms, or display of firearms, bans the display of dowry before the public, or cause nuisance or disturbance in the neighbourhood.

Violators of these restrictions could be punished with one month sentence along with fine ranging from Rs50,000 to over two million, and the trial should be held by a first class magistrate. The government will constitute one or more committees for the enforcement of the Act with the help of police personnel.

Other laws passed by the House with Deputy Speaker Sardar Sher Ali Gorchani in the chair included the Punjab Commission on the Status of Women (Amendment) Bill, Punjab Vigilance Committees Bill, The Punjab Flood Plain Regulation, The Punjab Forest (Amendment) Bill and Punjab Economic Research Institute (Amendment) Bill.

The Punjab Commission on Status of Women (Amendment) Bill has been recommended by the House Standing Committee on Gender Mainstreaming and it raises the status of chairperson of the Punjab Commission on the Status of Women from BPS-21 to MP-1 Scale (Management Position), which was already enjoyed by the ombudsperson appointed under the Punjab Protection against Harassment of Women at workplace.

The law eliminates the disparity in salary packages between the two heads of special institutions working for women empowerment. Besides, it also increases the upper age limit of members of the Punjab Commission on the Status of Women from 65 years to 70 years, while the lower age limit has been kept intact at 30 years.

The Punjab Flood Plain Regulation Act provides the regulations for constructing  flood plains for mitigation of flood damages and development of water resources. The Punjab Forest (Amendment) Bill, allows the government to use the forests and other lands allocated for forest development to be used for national projects of strategic importance.

All the amendments proposed by the opposition members were rejected with majority vote; however, the opposition members withdrew their amendments proposed to the Punjab Commission on the Status of Women (Amendment) Bill.