ISLAMABAD – The National Assembly on Monday passed the Election Laws (Amendment) Bill 2011 despite strong resistance from the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), which forced the party to stage a walkout in protest.
The amendments as introduced by the bill in Election Laws include production of national identity card by the voter issued by NADRA for casting vote, substitution of election commission in place of chief election commissioner where required, disclosure of secrete information or data by any employee of the commission to be punishable with imprisonment up to five years or fine up to five million rupees or both and adoption of local commission system for recording evidence for speeding trail of election petitions by the election tribunals.
Opposing the bill, opposition leader Nisar Ali Khan said without revamping NADRA, which was being headed by a crony of President Asif Ali Zardari, it was impossible to ensure the formation of new computerised national identity cards before the next elections, hence the move would deprive millions of people to cast votes in the next general elections. Minister for Religious Affairs, Syed Khursheed Shah Monday said that Election Law (Amendment) bill, 2011 would ensure free, fair and transparent elections in the country.
He said it would help remove election rigging and registration of bogus voters from voter list of the Election Commission, adding that the upcoming government would have real mandate of the people. MQM Parliamentary Leader Farooq Sattar also supported the passage of the bill and proposed that the concerns of the leader of the opposition should also be addressed. He recommended that a parliamentary committee or judicial commission should be formed to look into the case of 37 million bogus votes polled in the last general election.
PML-Q leader, Riaz Pirzada also supported the bill, but suggested that the concerns of the leader of opposition regarding registration of fake voters should be addressed. PML-N leader Zahid Hamid said the reservations of his party were not entertained and insisted that the bill must be referred to the NA standing committee for further consideration. Later, the deputy speaker took census of the House, which assed the bill with a majority vote.
