Parliament converted rule into law to stop floor crossing: Tarar

ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Information, Broadcasting, National Heritage and Culture Attaullah Tarar said on Wednesday that parliament is the supreme institution and through the Election (Amendment) Act, it had converted a rule into a law to stop floor crossing as envisaged in the Constitution.

Addressing a press conference here, he said that PMLN’s Bilal Azhar Kayani had presented the Election Act Amendment Bill in the National Assembly whereas Senator Talal Chaudhry moved it in the Senate. The minister said the bill was passed by the National Assembly and Senate by majority votes and became an act. He maintained the Constitution and law are clear on the floor crossing scourge and the new piece of legislation further elaborated the matter.

According to the rules, he said an independent candidate had to join any party within three days after the announcement of official results of elections. The minister asked if a member’s party could be changed after submitting an affidavit for joining a party. He said that two Supreme Court judges had raised important points and questioned that even after 15 days, the detailed decision was not issued by the majority judges in the bench.

Tarar said the PTI-backed independents joined a party that did not exist in parliament, so how that party could get any seat as those seats were given on the principle of proportion. Moreover, he said under proportional representation rules, it was binding on each political party to display its candidates’ lists for both women and minority seats.

He said one fails to fathom the logic and stance of the PTI leadership that they should not hold intra-party elections without any legal action or punishment on that account.

About the situation in Bangladesh, he said the government and people of Pakistan stood with the people of that country. He appreciated the determination and resilience of the Bangladeshi people for standing up against the regime marred by corruption.

Tarar said in Pakistan, the PTI founder chairman had compared himself with Sheikh Mujeeb eulogizing his stance in 1971 which Pakistanis considered as against national interests. PTI leaders during television talk shows claimed that their leader was like Sheikh Mujeeb, he added.

He asked the PTI leaders if they had any faith, any sense of shame as now they were trying to build another narrative when Sheikh Mujeeb’s daughter was thrown out of power by the people. Now when the statues of Sheikh Mujeeb were pulled down in Bangladesh, the PTI took a U-turn.

The PTI had created a narrative of Sheikh Mujeeb terming him a hero, posts were uploaded on its official social media accounts declaring him a hero but after the fall of Mujeeb’s statue, PTI had changed its stance. The minister said that the previous BD regime had created division in Bangladesh and PTI founding chairman also believed in creating division in politics and society.

Tarar suggested that Barrister Gohar should tell his party leader when he meets him in jail, he had termed Sheikh Mujeeb a hero, but now the party narrative has changed. To a question, he said the problem in Bangladesh was not economic condition, it was the problem of division, hatred and quota system. He expressed the hope that normalcy would return to Bangladesh and its journey towards prosperity would continue.

The minister questioned when Sheikh Mujeeb’s narrative was being made by the PTI founder chairman, did he not know where his daughter was seeking help from?

Answering a question, he said that matters have progressed amicably with Jamaat-e-Islami and progress has been made in yesterday’s talks. The government had sent some points to the JI which will be discussed today. Tarar said what Jamaat-e-Islami’s demand actually was the agenda of the government. “We also want electricity bills tariff to be reduced,” he remarked.

The minister said that now the PTI founder chairman has demanded that a refrigerator should be provided in his prison cell. “His Highness has decreed that when water has been brought from the refrigerator in the prison from the superintendent’s room, it gets hot on the way.” Now that the PTI founder had also got a refrigerator, a bicycle was already there, what he now needs is a swimming pool and a mini dance club to enjoy evenings.

To another question, he said that political parties were free to organise political rallies following the law but no one would be allowed to paralyse life in the federal capital.