The National Assembly (NA) passed the Election Act Amendment Bill with a majority vote on Tuesday, despite strong protests and objections from opposition parties. The newly passed Election Act Amendment Bill 2024 imposes restrictions on independent candidates, barring them from joining any political party after a specified period post-election. During today's session, the Chairman of the Parliamentary Affairs Standing Committee Rana Iradat Sharif presented a report on the Election Act Amendment Bill. Under the new amendment bill, parties failing to submit lists of candidates for reserved seats within the stipulated time will be ineligible for those seats. The bill also stipulates that candidates failing to declare party affiliation before the returning officer will be considered independents, with the amendment retroactively effective from the Election Act 2017.

Source: The Express Tribune August 06, 2024 22:43 UTC