Senate body seeks withdrawal of Electoral Laws Ordinance

ISLAMABAD: The Senate Committee on Law, Justice and Human Rights Tuesday called for withdrawal of the Electoral Laws (amendment) Ordinance, 2013, asking for recommendations of the Electoral Reforms Committee on mechanism of voting for overseas Pakistanis.
The debate and weighing of options to grant right to vote to overseas Pakistanis has been under way for several years. However, a final route and mechanism is yet to be determined on this count.
The committee was informed that earlier direct polling was proposed but a working group of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), constituted for this purpose has in its report proposed to use postal balloting.
The committee met under the chairmanship of PML-N Senator Javed Abbasi here at the Parliament House. The committee, however, did not agree with the proposal of postal balloting, as it was felt that this proposition was not in accordance with the original spirit of the ordinance.
It, therefore, recommended withdrawal of the bill for re-consideration by the Electoral Reforms Committee.
The forum also did not agree with the proposition of giving the Federal Judicial Academy (FJA), status of a degree awarding institution. Majority of the members was of the view that doing this would divert the academy’s attention from the training of officers which is its prime objective.
The committee, however, saw no harm in giving endorsement to the recommendation to include Chief Justice of Islamabad High Court in the Board of Governors of the FJA under the Federal Judicial Academy (Amendment) Ordinance 2014.
The board hitherto comprises of Chief Justice of Pakistan, minister of law, justice and human rights, chief justices of four provincial high courts and secretary law.
The Senate committee also considered two private members’ constitution (amendment) bills by independent Senator Mohsin Laghari and Senator Hafiz Hamdullah of the JUI-F.
The Ministry of Law was asked to circulate among the

members the draft to incorporate Senator Mohsin Laghari’s amendment regarding article 140 (A) in the Constitution.
The committee deferred Senator Hamdullah’s amendment regarding article 37 of the Constitution.
Later, the committee was briefed by director general of the National Accountability Bureau about the bureau’s proposals regarding eradication of corruption from the federal government departments.
The meeting was attended among others by Leader of Opposition Senator Aitzaz Ahsan, Senator Saeed Ghani of the PPP, Senator Mohsin Laghari, Senator Zahid Khan of Awami National Party, Senator Hamdullah, additional secretary law and director general FJA.