ISLAMABAD, July 30: The government has made a law, vesting the returning officers with suo motu power to reject nomination papers of any candidate on the basis of information received about his possible disqualification from “any source”.

It is reliably learnt from the National Reconstruction Bureau sources that the draft law, called “the People’s Representation (Amendment) Order, 2002,” has been approved by the president and will be promulgated within two days.

They have almost rewritten the existing Peoples’s Representation Act, 1976, bringing every provision in conformity with the military government’s agenda. The law will define the location of the polling stations, and manner and methodology of filing nomination papers.

The law will explain the procedure for the list of candidates for the seats reserved for technocrats and women. A political party, desiring to contest polls, will be required to file the list of candidates in order of priority.

The law will provide an amended procedure for scrutiny of nomination papers by the returning officers. The returning officers will be vested with the suo motu power to reject the nomination papers of any candidate on the basis of information received from “any source.”

Under the law, every legislator would be required to submit return of election expenses within a month. Those failing to file the statement of expenditures on their election campaign would not be notified as members.

Every member of parliament and provincial assemblies would be required to submit statement of his assets which would be open to public scrutiny. Any citizen, desirous of looking into those statements, would be entitled to see those on the payment of prescribed fee.

The Election Tribunal would be vested with suo motu powers to declare the election of any person void if it came to know from any source that he had defaulted on the payment of utility bills, bank loans, etc.