Daily Times

Minister for Human Rights Dr. Shireen Mazari on Wednesday said that use of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) was the only way to stop rigging in the elections.

Speaking here at National Assembly, she said that incumbent government was committed to ensure electoral reforms in the country for fair, free and transparent elections in the future. The minister said that overseas Pakistanis would be given right to vote and rigging in elections would be checked through use of EVMs.

She said that a parliamentary delegation including PPPP leader Syed Naveed Qamar also conducted a foreign visit in the past to witness election conducted through EVMs. Therefore, she said that it was morally incorrect to oppose the EVMs by the opposition members at that stage.

She said that former government itself agreed to consider use of EVMs in the Elections Act, 2017 and directed ECP through legislation to proceed in that regard.

It is to mention that the section 103 of the Elections Act is about use of electronic voting and biometric verification which says ” the Commission (ECP) may conduct pilot projects for utilization of electronic voting machines and biometric verification system in bye-elections in addition to the existing manual procedures for voter verification, casting and counting of votes to assess the technical efficacy, secrecy, security and financial feasibility of the electronic voting machines and biometric verification system and shall share the results with the Government, which shall, within fifteen days from the commencement of a session of a House after the receipt of the report, lay the same before both Houses of Majlis-e-Shoora (Parliament)”. She also reiterated to fulfill the promise of right to vote for overseas Pakistanis and said the government would ensure it through legislation. The minister said that electoral reforms would be ensured and transparent election system would be introduced in the country.