AMN
Pakistan National Assembly has passed a bill seeking an amendment to the Elections Act 2017, aimed at limiting the disqualification of lawmakers to five years with retrospective effect.
The Act- titled Elections (Amendment) Bill 2023 – also aims to empower the Election Commission of Pakistan to announce election dates unilaterally without having to consult the President.
Earlier this month, the Senate approved the bill. With Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf backed President Arif Alvi out of the country to perform Hajj, Chairman Senate Sadiq Sanjrani has taken charge as the acting President and possibly he would endorse the bill without wasting any time, reported Geo News.
The Act will pave the way for those who have been banned for life from running for public office. Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) supremo Nawaz Sharif and Istehkam-e-Pakistan Party (IPP) chief Jahangir Khan Tareen will be among those who benefit from the law. Speaking to a TV programme, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif said the disqualification amendment was not specific to PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif. He said it is a separate matter that the amendment is applicable to him in the current circumstances. Asif opined that lifetime disqualification was against fundamental constitutional rights.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has assembled a legal team to complete the legal work for the return of former premier and PML (N) Supremo Nawaz Sharif from London to Pakistan, reported ARY News. Nawaz, who is convicted in a corruption case, has been living in London on the pretext of ill health since 2019.