Going by the turmoil seen in at least one National Assembly seat by-poll and Senate Elections, it is a welcome move by the government to go for constitutional and electoral reforms through a bipartisan parliamentary committee. No parliamentary election in recent memory has been free from incidents of fraud, rigging (both pre- and post-poll) and in the case of the Upper House, excessive horse trading through the use of money or coercive measures to change loyalties. Prior to becoming Prime Minister through an election that contained many of the same flaws that previous ones had, Imran Khan had become the most prominent proponent of electoral reforms following a defeat in the 2013 general elections, following which he hit the streets, holding his infamous dharna to enforce some action. Once in power, the street agitation option no longer existed and given the razor–thin majority that the government has in Parliament coupled with the treatment it has so far meted out to the opposition, any headway in amending the Constitution for electoral reform was a longshot. This was more than evident when the push for an open ballot in the Senate was denied by the opposition, the ECP and eventually the Supreme Court.
Unfortunately, the choice of people the government has chosen to lead this legislation is a non-starter for the opposition. The opposition has clearly stated in the past that it will not participate in any committee that would be headed by National Assembly Speaker Asad Qaiser, while it had already objected to Mr Babar Awan moving the Elections (Amendment) Bill, 2020 in the capacity of an advisor to the PM rather than as an elected member of the House, which in their view is a clear violation of Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business in the National Assembly. In an environment where there already exists so much distrust, animosity and hate between the opposition and treasury benches, such offers of ‘working together’, followed swiftly by obviously controversial appointments, hold little weight. If the government is truly committed to bring about meaningful electoral reforms through Parliament it should make a genuine effort at it rather than just going through the motions that support its narrative.
