ISLAMABAD – National Assembly on Tuesday passed a bill amending the Elections Act 2017 to prevent lawmakers from changing their party affiliation.
The controversial bill, introduced by PML-N lawmaker Bilal Azhar Kiyani last month, was later approved by the NA Parliamentary Affairs Committee. The committee voted in favor of the bill with eight members supporting it, four opposing it, and Shahid Akhtar from Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI-F) abstaining.
Once enacted, this legislation will stop individuals who ran as independent candidates in the general election from later declaring an affiliation with any political party.
The legislation was made to reverse Imran Khan led PTI’s return to Parliament, which followed a Supreme Court ruling on July 12 that granted the Imran Khan-led party eligibility for reserved seats.
After SC’s ruling, Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has recognized 93 lawmakers from three provincial assemblies as PTI members—29 from Punjab, 58 from Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, and six from Sindh. Additionally, 39 members of the National Assembly who listed PTI affiliation in their nomination papers have been confirmed as PTI members by the ECP.
More details to follow…
