The Senate began its special commemorative session at the Parliament House in Islamabad this morning with Chairman Sadiq Sanjrani in the chair.  

The special commemorative session marks the Golden Jubilee Celebrations of the Senate of Pakistan.

At the outset, the Chairman highlighted the role of the Upper House in strengthening parliamentary democracy in Pakistan. He announced that the current session will continue for three days.   

Sadiq Sanjrani said former Chairmen and members of the Senate, Speakers of the four provincial assemblies, Chief Ministers of provinces, Prime Minister of Azad Jammu and Kashmir, Governor and Chief Minister of Gilgit-Baltistan, representatives of Chambers of Commerce and Industries as well as Bar Councils, and foreign envoys working in Pakistan will address the commemorative session.

Finance Minister Ishaq Dar says Pakistan's stability, progress and prosperity hinges on the continuity of the democratic system with stringent and transparent fiscal discipline.

Speaking in the Senate, he said this requires continuous collaborative and sustained efforts.

He said the Senate stands tall as an effective institutional mechanism to maintain unity and solidarity of the federation and provides equal representation to provinces and guards their interest.

He said, despite challenges, the Senate made this mark as a federal chamber, dedicated to majority and maintaining balance of power between the two houses.

Ishaq Dar, who is also Leader of the House in the Senate, further said that the Upper House also made significant headway as a deliberative chamber with great and diverse experience, contributing to the quality of legislation.

He said the Senate has played a role of a linchpin in forging national unity and cohesion, providing a dependable platform to manage conflicts and dispute resolution among provinces with complete institutional legitimacy.

Former and sitting members of the House also highlighted the past glory of the Senate and presented a way forward to face future challenges confronting Pakistan.

The Chairman Senate conferred honourary shields upon all the speakers. They include Raja Zafar-ul-Haq, Aitzaz Ahsan, Ilyas Bilour, Jan Jamali, Sehar Kamran, Syed Hidayatullah Shah, Farhatullah Babar, Farah Aqil Shah, Dr Jahanzeb Jalamldini, Abida Azeem, Prince Ahmed Umar Ahmedzai, Anwar-ul-Haq Kakar, Maulana Ataur Rehman, Behramand Tangi, Dinesh Kumar, Farooq H. Naek, Hidayatullah Khan and Faiz Muhammad.