- Ali Muhammad Khan clashes with Parliamentary Affairs Minister over the bill
- PTI lawmaker says the bill would be equivalent to pitting Parliament against SC
- JUI-F member abstains from voting while PPP’s member remained absent from the session
ISLAMABAD: Despite severe opposition by the PTI, the absence of a PPP member, and abstention by a JUI-F member, the National Assembly committee on Wednesday approved a bill proposing amendments to the election law, suggesting that a political party should not be allocated seats reserved for women and non-Muslim candidates if it failed to submit its list for the reserved seats within the prescribed time.
Chairman Rana Aradat Sharif presided over the National Assembly Standing Committee’s session to review the bill seeking amends to the Elections Act 2017. PML-N’s Bilal Azhar Kayani who had tabled the bill, briefed on the proposed amendments.
The NA Standing Committee approved the bill by a vote of eight against four with one abstention from the JUI-F and the absence of a PPP member.
Addressing the session, Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar said the issue of independent members joining any political party and reserved seats was “clear”, saying the bill cleared up many confusions.
“Parliament is the legislative body. Courts only interpret. Parliament has the power to legislate where it feels its powers are being interfered with or the Constitution is being rewritten. It is the power of Parliament to make constitutions and laws,” the minister said, asserting that there was nothing new in the bill.
Meanwhile, PTI MNA Ali Muhammad Khan remarked that “the bill seems to have come with the will of the law minister.”
He questioned whether the bill, were it to be made an act, would apply retroactively or not to which Tarar said it would. The PTI lawmaker said the bill would be tantamount to pitting Parliament against the Supreme Court.
In contrast, PTI members voiced strong opposition, with Ali Muhammad Khan emphasizing the need for thorough examination, suggesting that the amendments could be detrimental. JUI’s Shahida Akhtar Ali also criticized the process, arguing that the bill requires more detailed scrutiny and re-evaluation.
The Election Commission’s Secretary stated that the Commission could not comment on the bill’s effects, as this falls outside its purview. Khan further criticized the Election Commission, accusing it of misconduct and undue influence on political parties.
Ultimately, the committee approved the Election Act Amendment Bill 2024 with six votes in favor and four against. Notably, JUI’s Shahida Akhtar Ali abstained from voting, citing uncertainty about the bill’s restorative effects, and no PPP members attended the meeting.
The bill is now set to be presented to the National Assembly for final approval on Friday.
On Tuesday, the PML-N had tabled the Election Act (Amendment) Bill, 2024, in the National Assembly on Tuesday. Immediately after the bill was tabled, Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar suggested it would be appropriate if the bill was referred to a committee for input from all political parties.
Another amendment proposed to the Elections Act 2017 in the bill said that a candidate should be considered an independent lawmaker if they had not filed a declaration with the returning officer about their affiliation with a particular political party before seeking the allotment of a poll symbol.
Similarly, it also said that an independent candidate shall not be considered a candidate of any political party if, at a later stage, they filed a statement to that effect.
The amendments to sections 66 and 104 also included a declaration that the proposed amendments would take precedence over court orders, including the Supreme Court.
Some political observers are seeing the controversial bill as a move to frustrate the Supreme Court judgement on July 12, which had declared the PTI eligible for reserved seats in the National Assembly and provincial assemblies and also confirmed its status as a parliamentary party.
