October 20, 2002	Sunday	Sha'aban 13, 1423

Please Visit our Sponsor (Ads open in separate window)

ISLAMABAD, Oct 19: President Pervez Musharraf on Saturday night promulgated an ordinance to amend sections 131A and 132A of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) 1898.

The amended section 131A will now read:

Power to use military force for public security and maintenance of law and order:-

(1) If the Provincial Government is satisfied that, for public security, protection of life and property, public peace and the maintenance of law and order, it is necessary to secure the assistance of the armed forces or civil armed forces, the Provincial Government may require, with the prior approval of the Federal Government, or the Federal Government may on its own or on the request of the Provincial Government, direct any officer of the armed forces or civil armed forces, not below the rank of a JCO or equivalent to render such assistance with the help of the forces under his command, and such assistance shall include the exercise of powers specified in sections 46 to 49, 53, 54, 55(a) and (c), 58, 61, 64 to 67, 102 and 103 for a particular area defined in the notification for a limited period of 30 days extendable by another period of 30 days, as the circumstances may warrant.

Provided that such powers shall not include the powers of a Magistrate.

(2) Every such officer shall obey such requisition or direction, as the case may be, and in doing so may use such force as the circumstances may require.

(3) In rendering assistance relating to exercise of powers specified in sub-section (1), every officer shall as far as may be, follow the restriction and conditions laid down in the Code.

Similarly clause (aa) has been added after clause (a) of section 132A.

Clause (aa) suggested that the expression “civil armed forces” means the Pakistan Rangers, Frontier Corps, Frontier Constabulary, Balochistan Constabulary, Pakistan Coast Guards or any other force as the Federal Government may notify.

Similarly the president has also amended the Senate (Elections) Act, 1975, and Representation of the Peoples Act, 1976.

In the Senate (Election) (Second Amendment) Ordinance, 2002, an amendment has been made to section 11 sub clause (3) which will now read as:

(3) Every nomination paper shall be delivered by the candidate in person to the Returning Officer who shall acknowledge receipt of the nomination paper specifying the date and time of receipt.

Similarly in the Representation of the Peoples Act, 1976, section 12 sub clause (3) has been amended after which it will read as such:

(3) Every nomination paper shall be delivered to the Returning Officer by the candidate in person and the Returning Officer shall acknowledge receipt of the nomination paper specifying the date and time of receipt.

The chief executive’s order No 31 of 2002 has also been iss-ued under which Article 8EE has been inserted in the Chief Executive’s Order No. 7 of 2002.

Article 8EE deals with the nomination papers for election. It said that notwithstanding anything contained in any other law for the time being in force, every nomination paper for the membership of Majlis-i-Shoora (Parliament) and a Provincial Assembly, shall be delivered by the candidate in person to the Returning Officer who shall acknowledge receipt of the nomination paper specifying the date and time of receipt.