Parliamentary body approves recommendations for electoral reforms

ISLAMABAD: A parliamentary committee on Monday approved recommendations for electoral reforms.

The committee met Senator Jehangir Badar in the chair. The report will be tabled in the parliament today so that a bill on electoral reforms may be finalized.

The committee approved 14-day scrutiny period for nomination papers of candidates. It also recommended security deposit by the contenders of National Assembly and provincial assemblies Rs8000 and Rs4000 respectively.

Election commission representative in the meeting told the committee that it had changed an election symbol of an open book with a closed book. However, Jamait Ulema-i-Islam leader Abdul Ghafoor Haidri staged walked against the decision, saying his party had been contesting elections on the election symbol of an open book sine 1988.