ISLAMABAD: The Elec­tion Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Monday suspended the membership of 261 legislators for not submitting their statements of assets and liabilities.

According to an official of the ECP, seven senators, 71 members of the National Assembly, 84 members of the Punjab Assembly, 50 members of the Sindh Assembly, 38 members of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly and 11 members of the Balochistan Assembly had failed to submit their statements of assets.

He said the ECP had through a notification informed these parliamentarians that they would cease to function as legislators with immediate effect and till such statements were submitted by them.

He said that so far 905 legislators had submitted their yearly statements of assets and liabilities of their own, spouses and dependents to the ECP.

Out of total, 94 senators, 268 members of the National Assembly, 285 members of the Punjab Assembly, 118 members of the Sindh Assembly, 86 members of the KP Assembly and 54 members of the Balochistan Assembly submitted their statements with a ratio of 77.09 per cent.

The official said that presently there were total 1,174 parliamentarians, including 104 senators, 342 members of the National Assembly, 371 members of the Punjab Assembly, 168 members of the Sindh Assembly, 124 members of the KP Assembly and 65 members of the Balochistan Assembly.

He said that still eight seats were lying vacant in the Senate and national and provincial assemblies.

The official said it was a mandatory requirement under Section 42A of the Representation of the People Act, 1976, and Section 25A of the Senate (Election) Act, 1975, that those parliamentarians who failed to submit statements of assets and liabilities would be suspended from respective seats of the Senate and national and provincial assemblies.

Published in Dawn, October 17th, 2017