ISLAMABAD: Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar has said the decision of joining a political party by independent members of the Parliament is irreversible under the existing laws.
Addressing a news conference, here on Monday evening, he said Articles 51 and 106 of the Constitution warrant that independents will have to join a political party within three days of the publication in the official Gazette of the names of the returned candidates.
The Law Minister said the Parliament has amended the Sections 66 and 104 (a) of the Election Act, which is now the existing law in the country.
He said now the independents, who have already joined the Sunni Ittehad Council, cannot join any other party.
He said the Parliament is fully empowered to make or amend laws.
Despite the detailed verdict, our questions remain unresolved, said Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar. He emphasized that all judges in the court are equal, and seniority does not influence decisions. The case centered around two issues: whether the reserved seats should be allocated to the Sunni Ittehad Council, which had filed the case, and the nature of the request made.
Tarar noted that the two judges who issued dissenting opinions were specifically mentioned in the decision. He pointed out that Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) was not a party in the proceedings before the Election Commission, the Peshawar High Court, or the Supreme Court.
The minister highlighted that the current laws governing the allocation of reserved seats were not clarified in the decision. He added that the court is not bound by force or a chain of command. In fact, today’s ruling has strengthened the grounds for review petitions.
Regarding independent candidates, Tarar explained that once an independent candidate joins a political party, the decision is irreversible. An independent candidate must join a party within three days of winning a seat.
He further stated that parliamentary legislation takes precedence over Supreme Court decisions. The Peshawar High Court had upheld the Election Commission’s decision with a unanimous 5-0 ruling. According to Tarar, Supreme Court rulings on the constitutional principle of complete justice are based on the question of who sought relief.
