Speaker, parliamentary party have no authority to disqualify ‘defectors’

ISLAMABAD: Neither National Assembly Speaker Asad Qaiser nor a parliamentary party has any power whatsoever to disqualify or debar an MP from casting his vote in favour of or against the no-confidence resolution against Prime Minister Imran Khan.

“The language of the relevant constitutional provision is clear and unambiguous: that no one can stop or create hurdles in the way of any MP from casting his vote or unseat him,” eminent constitutional expert and former Senate Chairman Wasim Sajjad told The News.

The government has announced that the speaker will not allow any suspected defector of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) to vote for the no-trust motion and anybody doing so would be instantly disqualified by Asad Qaiser. It has also stated that the PTI would not permit its lawmakers to attend the voting process for the no-confidence resolution. This message is apparently meant to give a warning to any likely defectors.

Wasim Sajjad said that it was crystal clear in the Constitution that only the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has the power to disqualify and unseat a defector. The only role the speaker has in this situation is to send a reference to the ECP against an alleged floor-crosser.

To a question, the expert said that the vote cast by a legislator, who is subsequently declared a defector, will be valid because when he had done so he had not been determined to be a floor-crosser.

Explaining, he said that when the Supreme Court had disqualified an MP for possessing a fake educational degree or for providing any false information, the votes cast by him on different occasions before such a judgment were legitimate.

Wasim Sajjad said if the government and the speaker implemented what has been announced, it would land the matter in a superior court, where it can be argued that no MP can be barred from taking part in voting and how can anyone be declared a defector or unseated before he has cast his vote.

The Constitution spells out four specific stages, the last being the Supreme Court, through which a defecting lawmaker can be unseated.

First the party head will conclude that a member has defected. He will send a letter to the speaker that the concerned MP voted against the party’s directive. Then, the speaker, if he agrees with the conclusion, will forward a reference to the ECP against the member. After that, the ECP may or may not declare him a defector. The last stage will come when the aggrieved party goes into appeal against the ECP decision to the Supreme Court whose judgment will be final.

Article 63A deals with the disqualification on grounds of defection, etc. It says “if a member of a parliamentary party (PP) composed of a single political party in a House resigns from membership of his political party or joins another PP; or votes or abstains from voting in the House contrary to any direction issued by the PP to which he belongs, in relation to election of the Prime Minister or the Chief 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 and the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) and will similarly forward its copy to the member concerned.”

However before making such a declaration, the party head will provide the member with an opportunity to show cause as to why such a declaration may not be made against him. ‘Party head’ here means any person, by whatever name called, declared as such by the party.

A member will be deemed to be a member of a PP if he, having been elected as a candidate or nominee of a political party which constitutes the PP in the House after such election by means of a declaration in writing.

Upon receipt of the declaration, 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 the declaration before the ECP for its decision within 30 days.

When the ECP confirms the declaration, the legislator will cease to be a member and his seat will become vacant. Any party aggrieved by the decision of the ECP may, within 30 days, prefer an appeal to the Supreme Court which will decide the matter within 90 days.