On Tuesday, the National Assembly passed a bill amending the Elections Act 2017 to prevent lawmakers from changing their party affiliation. The controversial bill, introduced by PML-N lawmaker Bilal Azhar Kiyani last month, was approved by the NA Parliamentary Affairs Committee. The committee’s vote saw eight members supporting the bill, four opposing it, and Shahid Akhtar from Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI-F) abstaining.
Once enacted, this legislation will prevent individuals who ran as independent candidates in the general election from later declaring an affiliation with any political party.
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The bill was designed to counter the return of Imran Khan’s PTI to Parliament, following a Supreme Court ruling on July 12 that granted the party eligibility for reserved seats.
After the Supreme Court’s ruling, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) recognized 93 lawmakers from three provincial assemblies as PTI members—29 from Punjab, 58 from Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, and six from Sindh. Additionally, 39 members of the National Assembly who listed PTI affiliation in their nomination papers have been confirmed as PTI members by the ECP.
