ISLAMABAD: The National Assembly, Tuesday, passed “The Elections (Second Amendment) Bill, 2024” incorporating two amendments with a majority amid strong protest of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI)-backed Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC).

The government also rejected the two proposed amendments of PTI presented separately by Sahibzada Sibghatullah and Ali Muhammad in the bill.

Bilal Azhar Kayani of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) presented the bill in the House for passage. The PTI members strongly protested and raised anti-government slogans in front of the Speaker’s dais.

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The National Assembly Standing Committee on Parliamentary Affairs had already approved the bill with the support of seven members, while four members opposed it, and Shahid Akhtar, a Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam Pakistan (JUI-P) MNA abstained from voting.

However, after passage of the bill from the Committee, the government incorporated two more amendments in Clause 02 and Clause 04 of the bill before its approval from the Lower House of the Parliament.

According to amendment in clause 02 of the bill, “Provided that if a candidate, before seeking allotment of a prescribed symbol, has not filed a declaration before the returning officer about his affiliation with a particular political party by submitting party certificate from the political party confirming that he is that party’s candidate, he shall be deemed to be considered as an independent candidate and not a candidate of any political party.”

According to another amendment in Clause 04 which is substitution (replacement) of this Clause 04 (Insertion of Section 104A of Election Act, 2017), 104A; Consent for joining of political party by independent returned candidate to be irrevocable, etc.- “Notwithstanding anything contained in this Act or rules or any other law, for the time being in force, or a judgment, decree or order of any court including the Supreme Court and a High Court, the declaration, consent or affidavit, by whatever name called, of an independent returned candidate once given for joining a political party shall be irrevocable and cannot be substituted or withdrawn.”

The bill restricts independent candidates from joining another political party after a constitutionally and legal defined period (of three days).

The bill also prohibits independent candidates from joining another political party after a specified period.

According to the Clause 2(b) of the bill, “Provided that if a candidate, before seeking allotment of a prescribed symbol, has not filed a declaration before the Returning Officer about his affiliation with a particular political party by submitting party certificate from the political party confirming that he is that party’s candidate, he shall be deemed to be considered as an independent candidate and not a candidate of any political party: Provided further that an independent candidate shall not be considered as the candidate of any political party if at later stage he files a statement duly signed and notarized stating that he contested the general election as a candidate of the political party specified therein.”

The Clause 3(b) of the bill further described as “Provided further that if any political party fails to submit its list for reserved seats within the aforesaid prescribed time period, it shall not be eligible for the quota in the reserved seats at later stage.”

The legislation, once it comes into effect following the approval from the Senate and the President’s assent.

The bill, when it becomes a law, might reverse the PTI’s return to the Parliament after its “resurrection” in the assemblies following the Supreme Court’s July 12 ruling which had declared the Imran Khan-founded party eligible for reserved seats.

Since then, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has notified as many as 93 lawmakers from three provincial legislatures as PTI members. The electoral body issued a notification of 29 members of the PTI from Punjab, 58 from Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and six from Sindh. A total of 39 lawmakers in the National Assembly, who had shown their affiliation with the PTI in their nomination papers, have also been declared by the ECP as PTI members.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2024