Election law changes: PM directs his legal minds to contact opposition, ECP

ISLAMABAD: The controversial government-backed electoral reform bill, recently passed by the National Assembly in indecent haste, has been frozen on the direction of Prime Minister Imran Khan. The aim now is to develop a consensus between the government and the opposition on changes in the electoral system.

Informed government sources say that the prime minister has directed that the bill in its present shape will neither be passed by the Senate nor through a joint session of parliament. The sources say that the premier has also assigned some of his key legal minds to contact the legal experts of the opposition parties besides consulting the Election Commission of Pakistan to create a consensus on electoral reforms that are acceptable to all concerned. The premier has also barred his cabinet members from speaking against the Election Commission of Pakistan.

In his speech in the National Assembly on Wednesday, the prime minister formally invited the opposition to become part of the consultation process for a consensus on electoral reforms. The sources say that the premier was told by some legal minds of his own government that the bill passed by the National Assembly recently to amend the Election Act 2017 contains certain serious constitutional violations.

The premier was also advised that while making fundamental changes in the election system, the government must take the Election Commission of Pakistan into confidence. The government, it was said, should avoid bulldozing electoral changes of such a far-reaching nature. The premier agreed that amendments in the election law should be made through a consensus.

It is said that some government legal experts have already started interacting with the opposition’s legal minds to discuss the proposed changes and make electoral reform part of a united agenda.

The prime minister, it is said, is really keen on two areas of electoral reforms. Firstly, he wants to allow overseas Pakistanis to take part in the election process by casting their vote in the next general elections to be held in 2023.

Secondly, the premier wants to introduce an electronic voting system in the next general elections in order to get quick results. The sources said that parallel to the electronic voting mechanism, the premier also desires to have a paper vote for cross-checking, recounting and other legal and electoral reasons.

The government, after reaching some sort of agreement with opposition parties on the electoral reform package, will formally contact the Election Commission of Pakistan in order to take the Commission into confidence on the required changes in the election system.

The recent bulldozing of the proposed changes in the Election Act 2017 through the National Assembly by the government has not only upset the opposition parties but also angered the ECP, which reacted publicly to express its reservations to the amendments passed by the lower house. The ECP said that the bill approved by the National Assembly contained several constitutional violations. It was also said that the Commission had formally conveyed its reservations to the proposed bill but it was neither heard nor its recommendations were incorporated in the proposed law passed by the NA.

After the passage of the bill by the NA, it was referred to the Senate for its consideration. However, following the controversy generated by the bulldozing of the bill through the NA and the advice of saner elements in the government, the prime minister decided to freeze the bill and not push it through the Senate or by a joint sitting of parliament.