Parliament nod to amendments allowing overseas Pakistanis right of vote, use of EVMs

Islamabad: Prime Minister Imran Khan’s government on Wednesday finally managed to get the Elections (Amendment) Bill 2021 passed by a joint sitting of Parliament with a narrow margin of 221 votes against 203.

The bill grants voting rights to overseas Pakistanis and allows use of electronic voting machines (EVMs) in next general elections.

In a stormy joint sitting of the Parliament comprising the National Assembly and the Senate, the opposition alliance led by the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), Pakistan People’s Party and Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) registered a strong protest against the passage of the bill and tore copies of the day’s agenda and walked out.

The bill on the use of EVMs was earlier deferred at the request of Adviser to the Prime Minister on Parliamentary Affairs Babar Awan but was later put up for a vote.

Jadhav-specific bill also passed

Besides electoral reforms bill, the government also tabled a number of bills including the International Court of Justice (ICJ) Review & Reconsideration Bill that was passed by the parliament.

The bill aims to provide for the right of review and reconsideration in the Kulbhushan Jadhav case to bring into effect the judgment of the ICJ.

The ICJ (Review and Re-consideration) Bill, 2020, was moved by Law Minister Farogh Nasim and like the electoral reforms bill it too was passed with a majority vote.

The statement of objects and reasons of the bill says that the government of India initiated proceedings against Pakistan in the ICJ concerning alleged violations of the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations in the matter of the detention and trial of an Indian national, Commander Kulbhushan Sudhir Jadhav. He was sentenced to death by a military court in Pakistan in April 2017.

The ICJ in its July 17, 2019 judgment had observed that Pakistan was under an obligation to provide by means of its own choosing effective review and reconsideration of the conviction and sentence of Jadhav, so as to ensure that full weight was given to the effect of the violation of the rights set forth in Article 36 of the Vienna Convention, taking account of paragraphs 139, 145 and 146 of the judgment.

In order to make the said judgment fully effective, it is necessary that a mechanism for review and reconsideration of Pakistan’s own choice be provided, the text of the bill stated.

The joint session was supposed to take place on November 11 but was postponed by the government after its allies expressed reservations over EVMs. However, after taking all allies on board, President Arif Alvi summoned the session on Wednesday.

‘Evil vicious machines‘

Before tabling of the bills, opposition leader in the National Assembly and former Chief Minister of Punjab, President of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Shehbaz Sharif castigated the attempts of ‘bulldozing’ bills without proper debate and following the parliamentary procedures.

“The nation and history will not forgive the National Assembly speaker if these bills were bulldozed,” Shehbaz said. In response, the speaker said he would not violate rules.

Shehbaz said electronic voting machines (EVMs) were in fact “evil and vicious machines” and the government wanted to manipulate elections through these machines.

While talking to media persons after the walkout from the Parliament, opposition leaders announced they would challenge the amendments to Election Act 2017 in the Supreme Court of Pakistan.

PPP Chairperson Bilawal Bhutto Zardari criticised the government for bulldozing amendments and said the opposition would raise voice against the move on all relevant forums.

“The entire nation must be informed that the government did not win but lost during the joint session,” he said.