ISLAMABAD: The National Assembly, the lower house of Parliament, has passed the Elections Act (Amendment Bill) 2024 by a majority vote.
According to details, following a Supreme Court decision regarding reserved seats, the government has successfully carried out important legislation. The bill for further amendment to the Elections Act 2017 has been approved by the National Assembly by a majority vote.
The bill was presented jointly by the PML-N’s Bilal Azhar Kayani and Zaib Jaffar. As per the amendment bill, a candidate who does not submit their party affiliation certificate before obtaining the election symbol will be considered independent.
If the list of candidates for reserved seats is not submitted within the prescribed period, no political party shall be entitled to the reserved seats.
Federal Law Minister Azam Nazir Tarar said that legislation is the right of the House, claiming that this legislation is per the Constitution.
He said affidavits of affiliation with the Sunni Ittehad Council had been submitted; therefore, a party not participating in the elections cannot be given reserved seats.
He further mentioned that opposition members submitted affidavits of their affiliation with the Sunni Ittehad Council and asked them to stick to one stance.
Addressing the PTI lawmakers, he said according to the affidavit, they were joining the Sunni Ittehad Council of their own free will, adding that the document mentioned they wished to be considered part of the SIC. Their lawyer Faisal Siddiqui said they were asking for reserved seats for the SIC itself.
SIC leader Ali Muhammad Khan said the forum of parliament cannot be used for the benefit of a political party. He claimed that the Elections Act (Amendment Bill) 2024 was presented for political purposes. He questioned how they could be deprived of reserved seats through legislation.
“The Supreme Court gave us the right to reserved seats. We reject the bill. We will go to the Supreme Court against it,” he declared.
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