Senate standing committee on law, justice and human rights on Tuesday asked the government to withdraw the Electoral Laws (Amendment) Ordinance, 2013. The committee which met here with Senator Javed Abbasi in the chair, was briefed on direct polling proposed earlier, but a working group of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has proposed postal ballot.
The committee, however, did not agree with the proposal of using postal ballot and recommended withdrawal of the ordinance for reconsideration by the Electoral Reforms Committee. The committee disagreed with the proposal to give a degree awarding status to Federal Judicial Academy. The members were of the view that it would divert the academy's attention from training of officers, which is its prime objective. The committee, however, endorsed the proposal to include the Chief Justice of Islamabad High Court on the board of governors of the Federal Judicial Academy under the Federal Judicial Academy (Amendment) Ordinance, 2014.
The BoG earlier comprised Chief Justice of Pakistan, Minister of Law, Justice and Human Rights, Chief Justices of four provincial High Courts and Secretary Law, Justice and Human Rights. The committee also considered two private members' bills (Constitution Amendment Bills) moved by Senator Mohsin Laghari and Senator Hafiz Hamdullah.
Javed Abbasi asked the ministry of Law, Justice and Human Rights to circulate the draft of the bills among members. The committee deferred Senator Hafiz Hamdullah's amendment regarding Article 37 of the Constitution. Moreover, the director general National Accountability Bureau (NAB) briefed the committee on bureau's proposals pertaining to eradication of corruption from the federal government departments. The meeting was attended, among others, by Senator Aitzaz Ahsan, Senator Saeed Ghani, Senator Mohsin Laghari, Senator Zahida Khan, Senator Hafiz Hamdullah, additional secretary Law, Justice and Human Rights, DG Federal Judicial Academy and DG NAB.
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