News
Tuesday, April 10, 2012
Parties urged to decide themselves on election spending* Court seeks govt’s reply on petition seeking cut in election expenditures
* PML-N requests court to become party in case
By Hasnaat Malik
ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court on Monday said that political parties should themselves decide about election expenditures.
Hearing a petition seeking to bound political parties to limit expenditures during the general elections, the court directed the federal government to submit a reply by today (Tuesday), while Attorney General Maulvi Anwarul Haq informed the court that the federation had no objection on the contents of the Workers Party’s petition. The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) asked the court to become a party in this case, while Jamaat-e-Islami stated that the only way to control expenditure in the election was the proportionate representation system.
A three-member bench comprising Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, Justice Khilji Arif Hussain and Justice Tariq Pervaiz was hearing the case. Abid Hassan Manto, counsel for Workers Party, argued that the court should issue directions for curtailing expenses in the elections. The chief justice remarked that millions of rupees were spent in Senate elections, adding that various lobbies invest money in the elections to join in the government. He said that the political parties should themselves decide to curtail expenses in elections and parliament should amend the elections law.
The CJP said that most of the amendments regarding elections were introduced during former president Pervez Musharraf’s regime. He said that PML-Q leader Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain had stated in court that candidates lied about the expenditure in the elections after winning the seats.
Justice Khilji Arif Hussain said there was a need to change the political culture.
The chief justice questioned why the Supreme Court decision was needed in everything and why not the political parties did legislation in this regard in parliament. Praising the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM), the CJP said there were still a few political parities in Pakistan, which spent less in the elections. The MQM fields ordinary citizens in the elections, and many of its parliamentarians even did not have personal car. In Karachi, the election expenditures were less than a million, he added.
The chief justice said that on the elections day the biggest problem is to take out voters from their homes. People instead of going to polling stations to cast their votes preferred to watch movies at homes, adding that the judiciary and politicians were responsible for this culture. Manto said this was the reason that dictators come into power.
Justice Khilji remarked that forget the martial law now, as no one would be allowed to take unconstitutional steps. Justice Tariq Pervaiz said that the political culture changed with the passage of time and not with the Supreme Court verdicts. He said there was an MP whose example could be quoted. The chief justice on that remarked that Jamshed Dasti had lost his seat in light of the Supreme Court decision. He respected the court judgement and people elected him again.
He said that people themselves had to introduce the political reforms. Justice Khilji Arif Hussain asked the counsel for the Workers Party as to why he did not approach parliament for curtailing expenditure in the general elections. The hearing was adjourned until today (Tuesday).
Courtesy www.dailytimes.com.pk