ISLAMABAD: In accordance with a directive from the Supreme Court (SC), the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Friday suggested dates for the election in Punjab.
The ECP has recommended that the elections for Punjab’s provincial assembly be held between April 30 and May 7 in a letter to President Arif Alvi. The Chief Election Commissioner (CEC), Sikandar Sultan Raja, presided over the third straight meeting of the Election Commission today. After the president chooses a date, “the commission is prepared to fulfill its constitutional and legal obligations,” it declared.
However, in its letter to Governor Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Ghulam Ali, the letter said the commission is waiting for his response in light of the SC order.
The Supreme Court had on Wednesday ruled that the elections to the Punjab and KP assemblies should be held within the stipulated period of 90 days. It, however, allowed the ECP to propose a poll date that deviates from the 90-day deadline by the “barest minimum”, in case of any practical difficulty.
It also held that President Alvi and the KP governor will fix dates for Punjab and KP assemblies, respectively, in consultation with the ECP.
The Punjab and KP assemblies were dissolved on Jan 14 and 18, respectively. Under the law, the elections are to be held within 90 days after the dissolution of assemblies.
That means April 14 and April 17 were the deadlines for holding general elections to Punjab and KP assemblies, but the two governors instead of setting dates for elections after receiving the proposal from the ECP had advised the commission to consult stakeholders.
Chief secretaries and inspectors-general of the two provinces during meetings with the ECP had said they were short of police force and talked of terrorism threats, making out a case for putting off elections.
The finance division had also expressed its inability to provide funds and the interior ministry told the ECP that the army and civil armed forces will not be available.
