Islamabad: The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) of Pakistan has temporarily suspended the membership of 154 members of Senate and Provincial Legislative Assemblies for failing to furnish details of their assets. These members have been ordered to give complete information about their property as soon as possible and unless they do, they will be considered suspended. Several Imran khan govt ministers are also among the suspended MPs.
According to Don, these 154 MPs and MLAs will remain suspended until they submit their annual statements of assets. This is not the first time that the Election Commission of Pakistan has taken such strict action. According to the Pakistani newspaper, the Election Commission in Pakistan temporarily suspends the membership of many MPs and MLAs on such negligence every year. The Pakistani parliamentarians whose legislators have been suspended include Inter-Provincial Coordination Minister Fahmida Mirza, Science and Technology Minister Fawad Chaudhary and Maritime Affairs Minister Hyder Zaidi. There is a rule in Pakistan that every year MPs MLAs will have to submit details of their income or assets. MPs MLAs have to do this every year in the month of December.
It is mandatory to give property information in Pakistan too
According to Section 137 (1) of Election Act 2017 in Pakistan, it is mandatory for MPs and MLAs to file a statement about assets and responsibilities of wife and dependent children by 31 December every year. According to the law, the membership of MPs and MLAs is suspended until they file their property statements. The Election Commission also suspended more than 300 MPs-MLAs last year. However, membership of most MPs and MLAs was restored after fulfilling the legal imperatives.
Big resignation pressure on Imran
On the other hand, there is increasing pressure on Imran government in Pakistan to resign by 31 January. The Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM), an organization of eleven opposition parties, has given its full strength and the government’s problems have increased. Pakistan’s opposition coalition is planning to hold a demonstration in front of the Election Commission on 19 January. On this day Maryam Nawaz will also hold a big rally in Rawalpindi.
Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) vice-president Maryam Nawaz said that Prime Minister Imran Khan has been caught in the trap of his own. He said that the Imran government wanted to implicate former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in corruption cases. Now Imran himself got caught in the broadsheet case. He said that all the cases against Nawaz will end. These have been imposed with a sense of revenge. Maryam also addressed a large gathering in Lahore.
