By Staff Reporter
ISLAMABAD: The parliament approved a bill aimed at preventing independent lawmakers from joining political parties after a stipulated period, potentially undermining a recent Supreme Court ruling that boosted the opposition Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party.
The Elections (Second Amendment) Act, 2024, amends the Elections Act 2017 and has drawn criticism from PTI, led by former prime minister Imran Khan, which argues it is an attempt to frustrate the Supreme Court’s July 12 ruling that allowed the party to regain its status as the single largest party in the National Assembly.
The bill stipulates that independent candidates must submit a declaration of their party affiliation before seeking an election symbol, or be deemed independent. It also bars parties from submitting lists for reserved seats after the prescribed time period and makes a winning independent candidate’s decision to join a party irreversible.
The bill was presented in the Senate later in the day where it was passed by the majority.
Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar defended the legislation, saying it was parliament’s prerogative and in line with the constitution. “The elected parliament has the right to lawmaking, it cannot be given to 17 people,” he said, referring to the Supreme Court judges. “The National Assembly today passed the Elections (Second Amendment) Bill, 2024.”
The Supreme Court ruled on July 12 that PTI was eligible for seats reserved for women and minorities, dealing a significant blow to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s ruling coalition. PTI-backed candidates, who won the Feb. 8 elections as independents, had joined the Sunni Ittihad Council to form a coalition, bolstering their numbers.
Political parties are allocated 70 reserved seats — 60 for women, 10 for non-Muslims — in proportion to the number of seats won in general elections. This completes the National Assembly’s total 336 seats. A simple majority in parliament is 169 out of 336 seats.
The bill’s passage comes as PTI, which has been gaining momentum in recent months.
PTI lawmakers protested the bill, with Ali Muhammad Khan saying: “If my party is being granted a right through a Supreme Court order, how can you make a new law after the Supreme Court’s order and deny us that right?” “We reject this bill. This is an attack on the SC through the parliament by the government.”
“We will go to the SC against it and this lawmaking will be nullified because the Parliament is not standing behind this, there’s a political party behind it.”
Copyright © 2021 Independent Pakistan | All rights reserved
