The National Assembly on Sunday approved the Elections (Amendment) Act, 2023, empowering the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) to unilaterally fix a date for elections and limiting disqualification of lawmakers to a maximum of five years with retrospective effect. The bill had already been passed by the Senate and would now proceed to the president for final approval before becoming law.
President Arif Alvi is currently out of the country performing Hajj and Senate Chairman Sadiq Sanjrani is serving as acting president. Political observers claim he could approve the bill prior to Alvi’s return.
The key beneficiaries of the limiting of the disqualification period are former prime minister Nawaz Sharif and Istehkam-e-Pakistan Party (IPP) patron Jahangir Khan Tareen, who were disqualified “for life” in 2017 after the Supreme Court ruled that any disqualification under Article 62(1)(f) of the Constitution was for life.
Finance Minister Ishaq Dar tabled the bill in the Lower House, with Jamaat-e-Islami lawmaker Maulana Akbar Chitrali being the sole dissenting voice. In his rebuttable speech, he claimed the law was “person-specific” and was unnecessary. He argued that no changes could be made to Articles 62 and 63 of the Constitution without a constitutional amendment that requires a two-thirds majority. The government, however, has opposed this, claiming that neither is the amendment person-specific, nor does it impact Articles 62-63.
Constitutional and legal experts appear similarly divided, with some saying the bill could be challenged in the Supreme Court, while others maintain it does not require any constitutional amendment.
The amendment to Section 232 (Qualifications and Disqualifications) of the Elections Act states that a permanent disqualification of a lawmaker is against “the letter and spirit of Islam” and the Constitution. Its statement of objects and reasons of the bill says it was introduced to ensure a “fair trial and due process, and right of appeal and limit the period of disqualification in cases relating to a declaration referred to in paragraph (f) of clause (1) of Article 62.” It states that, “notwithstanding anything contained in any other provision of this act, any other law for the time being in force and judgment, order or decree of any court, including the Supreme Court and a high court,” no disqualification under Article 62(1)(f) shall exceed five years beyond the court’s ruling.
It added that the procedure, manner and duration of disqualifications and qualifications should be as specifically provided for in relevant provisions of Articles 63 and 64 of the Constitution. “Where no such procedure, manner or duration has been provided for therein, the provisions of this Act shall apply,” it said.
Meanwhile, the empowering of the ECP has been achieved through an amendment to Section 57(1) of the Elections Act. “The commission shall announce the date or dates of the general elections by notification in the official gazette and shall call upon the constituencies to elect their representatives,” it states. An amendment to Section 58 similarly allows the ECP to alter an election schedule after it has been issued.