ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif will today chair the Council of Common Interests (CCI) meeting that will decide the fate of the 2023 census, amid divisions among coalition partners over the issue.
According to the sources, the important meeting of the council is to be held at 12 noon in which all the chief ministers and members of the federal cabinet will participate.
The Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) has reportedly informed the federal government that it has completed all the formalities, and the results of the census can be taken for approval by the CCI.
If the CCI approves the census results, the elections are likely to be delayed by a couple of months as the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) will need additional time to conduct the delimitation exercise afresh.
Under the law, if a new census is notified, the ECP is bound to conduct elections based on the new data.
It is important to note that the ruling coalition has agreed to prematurely dissolve the National Assembly on August 9 – three days before its term expires – giving the electoral body 90 days to conduct the elections.
People’s Party, MQM split
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s two main allies – the Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) and the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) have conflicting views on the count.
The PPP has on several occasions called for the elections to be held on the basis of the 2017 census and reiterated that any delay in the elections would not be tolerated.
Speaking on the floor of the Senate on Friday, Climate Change Minister Sherry Rehman said the issue of the census was controversial and would open a new pandora’s box of constituencies.
This issue can be used to delay the election. We do not want the elections to be delayed, but they should be held on time and according to the constitution.
On the other hand, the MQMP has conveyed its reservations on the matter to the Prime Minister and has emphasized that elections held on the back count will not be acceptable.
PML-N is ready to remove reservations.
Moreover, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PMLN) leader Talal Chaudhry told JEE News that there is no problem in delaying the elections as it is more important that the election results are acceptable to all.
Elections may be delayed by 4 months
Speaking to JEE News on Friday, former secretary ECP Kanwar Dilshad said that if the CCI approves the 2023 census, the elections will be held in 2024.
He said that if the gazette notification of the new digital census is issued on the recommendations of the CCI, then the ECP is legally bound to draw new delimitations under Article 51(5) of the Constitution.
