Islamabad :
Following the motion of no-confidence against Prime Minister Imran Khan, a reference was filed in the Supreme Court for interpretation of Article 63A of the Constitution for possible disqualification on the part of government members for changing allegiance, according to a statement from the Presidency. Arif Alvi approved to file a reference in the Supreme Court under Article 186 of the Constitution.
The President, on the advice of the Prime Minister, has sought the opinion of the Supreme Court on the aims and objectives of Article 63A of the Constitution, its scope and other related matters.
The statement said that the reference was made in view of the news of defection of some MPs and the current situation in the country.
The reference raises the following questions before the Supreme Court:
Given the spirit of the Constitution, which interpretation of Article 63A would be acceptable to prevent the scourge of deviation and ensure transparency of the electoral process, democratic accountability:
i) Interpretation which in case of deviation does not allow any prior action other than de-seating the member in accordance with the prescribed procedure such as any kind of restriction or barring him from contesting the election anew.
ii) A strong, meaningful interpretation that would disqualify a member involved in such a constitutionally prohibited act for life and neutralize the effects of the deviant vote and uproot the practice.
Will the vote of a member who is involved in a constitutionally forbidden and morally reprehensible act be counted or can such votes be excluded?
Will a member who does not resign from the assembly seat on hearing the voice of his conscience and commits a deviation which cannot be considered honest, virtuous and sensible be disqualified for life?
In the current constitutional and legal framework, what steps can be taken to prevent floor crossings, vote buying and selling?
Talking to the media on his arrival at the Supreme Court to file the reference, the Attorney General said that he would personally represent the President in the reference.
The Attorney General said that the reference was mainly to seek judicial opinion on Article 63A of the Constitution and asked about the period of disqualification of the deviant members.
He said that the opinion of the court has been sought whether the term of the deviant member is for the present period or for life. And will the vote of the deviant member be counted or not?
It may be recalled that the decision of the government to file a reference for the interpretation of Article 63A came at a time when it was revealed that several PTI lawmakers were hiding in Sindh House Islamabad while this development was indicated. Opposition parties have stated they will not run in the by-elections.
Prime Minister Imran Khan and a few members of the cabinet had accused the opposition of horse-trading on voting for the success of the confidence motion, revealing that members were being bought and sold at the Sindh House in the capital.
Several members of the government have repeatedly claimed that these opponents have ‘sold their conscience for money’, but dozens of members who have disagreed with Imran Khan’s government have said that they are going to vote as they wish. Are
Television footage showed PTI members of the National Assembly, including a few women legislators, sitting in the spacious Sindh House, right in front of the official residence of the Chief Justice of Pakistan. located in.
According to Article 63A of the Constitution, a Member of Parliament can be disqualified on the ground of deviation.
If a parliamentarian votes against any directive issued by his parliamentary party for the election of the Prime Minister or Chief Minister or abstains from voting no-confidence, he may be disqualified.
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The article said that in this regard, the party chief has to declare in writing that the member of the assembly concerned has defected, but before making the announcement, the party chief will provide an opportunity to the deviant member to explain.
After giving the members an opportunity to state their reasons, the party chief will send a statement to the Speaker and he will send the statement to the Chief Election Commissioner.
Thereafter, the Chief Election Commission will have 30 days to confirm the announcement.
According to the article, if ratified by the Chief Election Commissioner, the said member will not be a part of the House and his seat will become vacant.
The government had earlier indicated that Article 63A would be used to thwart a no-confidence motion against Prime Minister Imran.
Earlier this week, Babar Awan, the prime minister’s adviser on parliamentary affairs, said Article 63A of the constitution was intended to prevent anyone from voting in the name of party leadership.
“We will crush the no-confidence motion through the constitution and the law,” he claimed.
