No barriers

This refers to the news report ‘Tax evasion, debt default, crime, dual nationality no more hurdle to be MP’ (Feb 21). To be a member of parliament, a person would face no barriers even if he is a tax evader or a defaulter. It doesn’t matter if he is facing criminal charges or if he possesses dual nationality – thanks to the newly-passed Elections Act 2017. Prior to the passage of this law, the prospective candidate had to make as many as 19 declarations on oath, which used to be mandatory for him before being eligible to contest for an MP seat. But now, these declarations have been deleted in the newly passed law.

With this change in oath, a path has been paved to avert disqualification during the scrutiny of nomination papers or after becoming a lawmaker. We can say that it’s nothing but compromising the fundamental principle of democracy by curtailing the transparency about the candidates running for public office. On the other hand, Chief Justice Saqib Nisar has already announced: “Parliament is supreme, but the constitution is above that and has set the limits. Any legislation found in contravention of the fundamental rights of the citizens, or in violation of the constitution could be struck down.”

Air-Cdre (r) Azfar A Khan

Karachi