SC grills ECP, NADRA over delay in electoral rolls

The Supreme Court on Wednesday directed the Election Commission of Pakistan and National Database and Registration Authority to explain their position over non-completion of its July 4, 2011 directive for furnishing new electoral rolls by February 23.
It said that fresh plans for completion of exercise were not accepted. The apex court further ordered the secretary Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) and chairman National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) to file explanation on why court orders for preparation of electoral rolls by February 23 were not complied.
A three-member bench headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, while hearing PTI chief Imran Khan’s petition seeking removing of bogus votes from the electoral rolls noted that after the 20th Amendment, the members of Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) had come in the domain of the judiciary. “If they would violate the court order, their cases could be sent to be Judicial Commission”, the chief justice noted.
The court also discharged notices earlier issued to suspend the membership of 28 parliamentarians elected by the incomplete Election Commission. The chief justice asked the ECP joint secretary that the court judgment was very clear as it had directed the ECP to finalise the transparent voters list by February 23, 2012 and why the process had not been completed during the stipulated time. The chief justice noted that the ECP had not realised the seriousness of the issue, adding that what expectations could people have from the ECP that does not obey the orders of the Supreme Court. Justice Tariq Parvez remarked that independent Election Commission does not mean ‘free’, adding all the institutions are under the command of the constitution.
The chief justice warned that ECP and NADRA were responsible for not implementing its orders and observed that it would entail serious legal consequences.