The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Friday proposed the dates for the Punjab Assembly elections from April 30 to May 7.
A meeting of the Election Commission was held today under the chairmanship of Chief Election Commissioner Sikandar Sultan Raja – the third meeting in a row.
The election body said it has written a letter to President Arif Alvi in light of the Supreme Court of Pakistan’s decision.
The Commission is ready to fulfill its constitutional and statutory obligations after the date is selected by the President.
However, in its letter to Governor Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Ghulam Ali, the commission said it was awaiting his reply in light of the Supreme Court’s order.
‘Step in the right direction’
Meanwhile, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has welcomed the development and praised the ECP for taking a “step in the right direction”.
In a video statement, senior PTI leader Fawad Chaudhry said that the Supreme Court in its order had allowed the president and the ECP to go beyond the 90-day period but used the word “minimum” in it. was’.
الیکشن کمیشن کے انتخابات کی تاریخ دینے پر تحریک انصاف کا رد عمل
— PTI (@PTIofficial) March 3, 2023
pic.twitter.com/36mNJ3XKO2
“We believe that the ECP has taken a step in the right direction and the President will now announce the date for the elections.”
Congratulating the nation on the progress, Fawad said that this is a victory for PTI and the nation and the constitution of Pakistan.
Supreme Court ruling
The apex court, in its judgment on March 1, had noted that “under normal circumstances” the elections should have been held on April 9 as per the President’s announcement.
“However, we are informed that due to the delay in the emergence of a date for holding general elections, it may not be possible to meet the 90-day deadline set by the Constitution. It is also the case that (probably (but due to misunderstanding of law) the Election Commission did not make itself available for consultation required under Section 57(1) of the 2017 Act,” read the court order.
“The Election Commission is therefore directed to use its best efforts keeping in mind Sections 57 and 58 of the Act of 2017 to propose immediately, a date for the President to meet the said deadline. accordingly. If such course is not available, then the Election Commission shall accordingly recommend a date for holding the polls which deviates least from the said deadline. will announce the date of holding. Assembly,” he further directed.
In the decision regarding the elections in KP, the governor was directed to announce the date of the elections after consulting the ECP.
