The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) opposed the election amendment approved by the National Assembly and notified the federal government that 13 parts of the proposed law violated the Constitution.

ECP informed the federal government of its position through a letter through the Department of Parliamentary Affairs. This letter was written by the ECP secretary to his colleagues in the ministry.

ECP has asked the Ministry to inform Prime Minister Imran Khan of its reservations.

The ECP stated in the letter that the bill passed by the National Assembly violated the Constitution. It said that dividing electoral districts based on voters rather than population is unconstitutional.

The ECP secretary said in the letter: “The right to voter lists falls within the scope of ECP, and Article 13 of the proposed electoral law is unconstitutional.”

It also stated that the use of public voting instead of secret voting in the Senate poll conflicts with the opinion given by the Supreme Court.

Parliament passed a record 21 government bills in one day

Last week, the National Assembly passed a record 21 government bills, including the 2020 election (amendment) bill.

Babar Awan, the Prime Minister’s Parliamentary Affairs Adviser, submitted the bill for consideration after suspending the rules.

According to official media reports, the House of Representatives passed the bill with a majority vote after a voice vote.

The 2020 Election (Amendment) Bill was introduced in the National Assembly on October 16, 2020, and submitted to the Standing Committee of Parliamentary Affairs on the same day.

Election (Second Amendment) Bill

Similarly, the House of Representatives also passed the “Elections (Second Amendment) Bill”, which involves the use of technology and modern equipment to achieve fair, free, and transparent elections.

The bill also aims to grant overseas Pakistanis the right to vote, which may only be achieved by granting ECP exclusive powers with technical assistance from NADRA and other agencies.

Articles 94 and 103 of the 2017 Election Law seek to be amended to achieve the above goals.

The bill was also piloted by Awan in the House of Representatives.