NA panel green-lights bill on contesting polls

Proposed law seeks to bar candidates from contesting elections from more than 2 seats

ISLAMABAD:

A standing committee of the lower house of the parliament has given the green light to a piece of proposed legislation seeking amendment to the constitutional provision that allows a candidate to contest elections from multiple constituencies.

The National Assembly Standing Committee on Law and Justice on Wednesday approved the Constitutional Amendment Bill, 2023 which seeks to amend Article 223 of the Constitution.

Article 223 says nothing shall prevent a person from being a candidate for two or more seats at the same time, whether in the same body—legislature— or in different bodies.

It, however, clarifies that if that person is elected to more than one seat he shall, within a period of thirty days after the declaration of the result for the last such seat, resign from all but one of his seats.

“If he does not resign, all the seats to which he has been elected shall become vacant at the expiration of the said period of 30 days except the seat to which he has been elected last…

“If he has been elected to more than one seat on the same day, the seat for the election to which his nomination was filed last [will be regarded as his seat],” the article adds.

Under the bill moved by Abdul Akbar Chitrali of the Jamaat-e-Islami, no candidate will be able to contest election from more than two constituencies of the National Assembly or provincial assemblies.

When the National Assembly Standing Committee on Law and Justice—chaired by MNA Muhammad Bashir Virk—took up the bill for discussion, Chitrali said a lot of money is wasted when a candidate runs for election from multiple constituencies.

He said the Constitutions allows a person to file nomination papers at multiple constituencies but also makes it mandatory for that candidate to retain only one of the seats and vacate all others.

Chitrali said this provision is strange as it results in considerable loss to the national exchequer and exploitation of other contestants and general voters.

According to the constitutional amendment bill, it costs the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) Rs20 million toRs25 million to hold elections at a constituency—Rs7 million are spent on printing ballot papers, Rs3 millions are incurred on transportation and RS13 million spent on election staff.

The bill says a candidate will be eligible to contest election on maximum two seats at the same time and will be prohibited from contesting election from more than two constituencies.

If the candidate is elected to both seats, he will be obliged to resign from one seat within 30 days. After the expiry of the said thirty days, one of the seats will be deemed vacated, it says.