ISLAMABAD: The National Assembly of Pakistan on Thursday passed the Election Amendment Bill, 2022, to revoke the voting rights for overseas Pakistanis and prevent the use of electronic voting machines (EVMs) in general elections.
Pakistan’s ousted prime minister Imran Khan sanctioned the use of EVMs for the next polls in a joint parliamentary sitting in February, though the opposition factions, which are now in government, resisted the move and vowed to challenge it in the country’s top court.
Khan also wanted overseas Pakistanis to vote in future elections, saying that they made major contributions to the country’s economy by sending remittances. The former prime minister is also said to have a massive following among the Pakistani diaspora.
The election amendment bill, which was tabled by parliamentary affairs minister Murtaza Javed Abbasi, was passed with majority and sent to the Senate for approval.
“Overseas Pakistanis are precious asset of the country and the government does not believe in snatching their right to vote,” law minister Azam Nazeer Tarar was quoted by Radio Pakistan in the context of pilot testing of new forms of voting system.
Responding to the development, Pakistan's former information minister Chaudhry Fawad Hussain said on Twitter the parliamentary proceedings reflected the government's priorities.
"Overseas Pakistanis have been deprived of their right to vote," he wrote, adding the new government's agenda was "to bring back old Pakistan in its worst form."
Ex-PM Khan said earlier this year he wanted to make future elections more transparent by introducing technology, through his political rivals accused him of trying to manipulate voting process to his party’s advantage through EVMs that had never been tested in Pakistan.
Tarar noted the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) was also opposed to the introduction of EVMs since their potential of misuse and tampering was too high.
Khan, who was ousted from power in April after losing his parliamentary majority, has been seeking fresh elections in the country.
Pakistan’s new coalition government has said the government will only go to polls after introducing electoral reforms.
