commencement of the Constitution to the members of the Constituent Assembly of Pakistan; provided that these should not be varied to the disadvantage of the members during their term of membership.
69. Voting and quorum in the House of the Federal Legislature.- (1) Except in cases in which a specific majority is provided, all decisions in each of the Houses of the Federal Legislature should be taken in accordance with the rules framed by the House concerned. The presiding officer of any House of the Federal Legislature should not exercise any vote excepting a casting vote in case of a tie.
(2) The Houses of the Federal Legislature should have power to act notwithstanding any vacancy in the membership thereof, and any proceedings in either House of the Federal Legislature should be valid notwithstanding that it is discovered subsequently that some person who was not entitled so to do, sat or voted or otherwise took part in the proceedings.
(3) The quorum for a meeting of each House or for a joint sitting of both the Houses, should be one-seventh of the total number of the members of each House or of both the Houses as the case may be.
70. Ordinances by the Head of the State.- The Head of the State should have power to promulgate ordinances during the period when the Legislature is not sitting. An ordinance promulgated under this paragraph should be laid before the Federal Legislature at its next meeting and should cease to operate-at the expiration of six weeks from the re-assembly of the Federal Legislature.
71. Joint sittings of both the Houses.-Rules for joint sittings of the two Houses should be framed at a joint sitting of both the Houses of the Federal Legislative.
72. Assent to:— When a Bill has been passed by the Houses of the Federal Legislature, it should be presented to the Head of the State and the Head of the State should declare within ninety days either that he assents to the Bill or that he withholds assent therefore:
Provided that the Head of the State may, as soon as possible after presentation to him. of a Bill for assent, return the Bill if it is not a Money Bill, to the Houses with a message requesting that the Houses should reconsider the Bill or any specified provisions thereof and, in particular, should consider the desirability of introducing any such amendments as he may recommend in his message, and when a Bill is so returned, the Houses should reconsider the Bill accordingly, and if the Bill is passed again by the Houses with or without amendment and presented to the Head of the State for assent, the Head of the State should not withhold assent therefrom.
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