Bill ready to allow dual nationals to contest elections

The federal cabinet in its meeting on Tuesday (today) will take up the Constitutional Amendment Bill 2020, aimed at giving dual nationals the right to contest the elections in country and ending the secret voting in the Senate elections.

According to the bill, a copy of which is available to The Express Tribune, any person holding dual citizenship will be eligible to contest the election. however, in case of winning the election that person would be required to relinquish the citizenship of the other country.

According to the draft bill, Article 63 of the Constitution would be amended to give the dual nationals the right to contest elections, while Article 59 and Article 226 would be amnded to end the secret balloting in the Senate elections.

According to the draft bill, an amendment has been proposed to Section 2 of Article 59 of the Constitution to allow Senate elections to be held through open ballot, adding the word "open" to the word "transferable".

Another amendment has been proposed to Article 226 to end the secret balloting. According to the draft, the word for open ballot has been added to the Senate elections along with the words prime minister and chief minister.