Islamabad: President Asif Ali Zardari has approved the Election Act Amendment Bill 2024, which aims to restrict lawmakers from switching parties. The bill, now forwarded to the Senate Secretariat for official notification, seeks to prevent independent lawmakers from aligning with a party after the elections.
Under the new law, candidates must declare their party affiliation to the returning officer before receiving an election symbol. Failure to do so will classify them as independent candidates, not representing any party. Additionally, political parties must submit their lists for reserved seats within a specified timeframe to be eligible for those seats.
The bill also imposes a restriction on lawmakers, prohibiting them from changing parties within three days of winning their seat. The approval of this bill comes amid ongoing discussions between the Election Commission Pakistan (ECP) and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) regarding decisions on reserved seats.
