The Parliamentary Affairs Committee of the National Assembly on Wednesday approved, by an 8-4 majority, a bill proposing amendments to the Elections Act, 2017 seeking to bar lawmakers from changing their party affiliation after having earlier declared it.
The committee passed the bill with the support of eight members of the ruling coalition, while four members of opposition parties opposed it, and a Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (Fazl) lawmaker abstained from voting. Tabled by Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) lawmaker Bilal Azhar Kiyani a day earlier, the bill seeks to amend section 66 and 104 of the Election Act, 2017, with critics stating its primary purpose is negating a Supreme Court ruling on reserved seats for the PTI.
Participating in discussions on the amendments, Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar said the Constitution was clear on the matter of independent lawmakers joining any political party, and the reserved seats allocated to parliamentary parties. PTI’s Ali Muhammad Khan rebuffed his explanation, maintaining the law minister should not advocate for a private member’s bill.
The proposed amendments state that individuals who contested general elections as independent candidates cannot change their party affiliation after the three-day window permitted to them after their notification as returned candidates. “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 elections as a candidate of the political party specified therein,” read the bill.
The bill further proposes declaring as ineligible any political parties who fail to submit lists of reserved seats within the stipulated time to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP). “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,” it states.
Additionally, the bill proposes that candidates would be considered independent candidates if they fail to submit party affiliation declarations prior to seeking the allotment of an election symbol. “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,” read the bill.
If voted into law, the proposed amendments would come into effect immediately and would be deemed to have taken effect retrospectively from the commencement of the Elections Act, 2017.