Alliance of political parties doesn't affect proportional representation: SC

ISLAMABAD (92 News) – While hearing the presidential reference on Senate open balloting, Supreme Court (SC) Justice Ejazul Ahsan remarked that the alliance of political parties doesn't affect proportional representation, adding that if a party wants to unite, it should do so openly.

A five-member larger bench headed by Chief Justice Gulzar Ahmed conducted the hearing and remarked that members of a political party in any provincial assembly can vote for the candidates of their allied parties.

During the hearing, the top court said that the representation of every political party in the elections must be proportional to its votes. The chief justice inquired about the ECP's answer, to which its lawyer replied that the answer has been submitted which is similar to the first one. He also said the apex court will examine the details.

Pakistan Peoples' Party (PPP) counsel Raza Rabbani said that the alliance of opposition parties could change the proportion of seats in the Senate. "The purpose to constitute the Senate was to provide equal representation to all provinces, and consensus between both the houses in the parliamentarian system is not possible," he added.  

The hearing on the reference was adjourned till Monday. Raza Rabbani will continue his arguments in the next hearing.