ISLAMABAD: Mere meeting of a set of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) lawmakers with Prime Minister Imran Khan against the party policy doesn’t attract disqualification under the anti-defection clause of the Constitution.The PML-N has announced to issue show-cause notices to legislators, who met the prime minister, at a time when the government-opposition confrontation is very high and the two sides don’t see eye to eye on any issue.Certain PML-N legislators’ session with the premier may not be hit by the anti-floor crossing provision, but their move came out as a major embarrassment for their party, when the combined opposition has decided and are preparing to move a no-confidence motion against Senate Chairman Sadiq Sanjrani.“The Constitution expressly lists the conditions when the anti-floor crossing clause will be invoked against an MP, violating the discipline and direction of the party on whose ticket he has been elected,” prominent lawyer Barrister Omar Sajjad explained to The News when contacted. Article 63A spells out two occasions when an MP would be hit by the anti-defection provision. It says if a member of a parliamentary party in any legislature resigns from the membership of his political party or joins another parliamentary party [condition one]; or votes or abstains [condition two] from voting contrary to any direction issued by the parliamentary party to which he belongs in relation to election of chief minister or prime minister; or a vote of confidence or a vote of no-confidence; or a money bill or a Constitution (Amendment) Bill; he may be declared in writing by the party head to have defected from the political party, and the party head may forward a copy of the declaration to the presiding officer [speaker], the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) and the defecting member.Before making the declaration, the party head will provide such member with an opportunity to show cause as to why such declaration may not be made against him. Upon receipt of the declaration issued by the party head, the presiding officer will within two days refer, and in case he fails to do so, it will be deemed that he has referred, the declaration to the CEC who will lay it before the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) for its decision confirming the declaration or otherwise within 30 days.When the ECP confirms the declaration, the concerned member will cease to be a legislator and his seat will become vacant. Any party aggrieved by the ECP decision may, within 30 days, refer an appeal to the Supreme Court which will decide the matter within 90 days.Omar Sajjad said even issuance of statements by certain lawmakers differing with their party would not amount to committing defection. He said no legislator can be declared guilty of floor crossing unless he resigns from his party or votes against its direction as per the Constitution.He said that a lot depends on the speaker of the concerned legislature to refer the declaration of the party head against the deserting member to the ECP for a decision. Generally, he said, the speaker doesn’t oblige the opposition.This, he said, happened even in the case of the then Prime Minister, Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani, when the Supreme Court had handed down a judgement against him, and the speaker (Dr Fehmida Mirza, who is now minister in the present coalition government) had refused to approach for his disqualification.In May 2012, she ruled that no question of disqualification of the prime minister has arisen from the Supreme Court verdict that convicted Gilani for contempt of court. “There is no need to forward a disqualification reference against Gilani to the ECP as the apex court had not raised the issue of his disqualification in its decision,” she said in her lengthy ruling.The speaker held that no specific charge has been framed against the premier regarding the propagation of any opinion or acting in any manner against the independence of the judiciary or defaming or ridiculing the judiciary. “The speaker is not supposed to act merely as post office. I am not bound to forward the disqualification reference to the ECP, and have to apply my mind judiciously to decide whether any question in the nature of disqualification has arisen.”Omar Sajjad could not recall when any federal or provincial lawmaker was disqualified on the charge of defecting his/her party in the recent parliamentary history of Pakistan. He said it is obvious from Article 63A that the speaker has to send to the ECP the declaration of the party head against the member, accused of defection, within two days, and if he fails to do so, it will be deemed to have been referred.The lawyer said that the decision on such a declaration was to be taken by the ECP first, and then the Supreme Court in the case of an appeal against the ECP determination.Omar Sajjad pointed out that a large number of PML-N members of the Balochistan Assembly had voted against the party direction in the election of Abdus Qaddus Bizenjo as the chief minister after the ouster of Nawab Sanaullah Zehri. The PML-N had not taken any action against the deserters.
from The News International - National https://ift.tt/2RLhYH9
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