ISLAMABAD: Governor Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Haji Ghulam Ali on Tuesday announced May 28 as the date of elections in the province after meeting Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) and President Dr. Arif Alvi.
The Governor met the ECP officials earlier today and later President Dr. Arif Alvi called them to discuss matters related to the KP Assembly General Elections.
The KP Assembly was dissolved in mid-January and a caretaker setup was set up to conduct the elections. However, despite the orders of the Supreme Court, the date of the elections has not been fixed.
During the meeting, the President suggested to announce the date of elections to the KP Assembly after consulting the ECP to avoid any complications as almost two weeks have passed.
Emphasizing the need to uphold the constitution and hold general elections within the stipulated time frame, President Alvi directed Governor Ali to implement the Supreme Court order where directed.
A meeting held on March 8 between the election body and top officials including Governor Ali did not prove fruitful as the election date failed to be fixed despite Supreme Court orders.
The Supreme Court while giving its verdict on March 1 said that the elections to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab Assemblies should be held within 90 days.
In the judgment, the apex court noted that there are “various aspects and requirements” for holding elections but ruled that one thing that was “absolutely important is the time frame for the elections”. It added that the Constitution envisages two periods for holding elections – 60 days if the Assembly is dissolved after the expiry of its term and 90 days if the Assembly is dissolved before the expiry of its term. go
Two assemblies – KP and Punjab – where the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) was in majority were dissolved on the directives of party chief Imran Khan to force the federal government to hold early general elections in the country.
