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Local media says federal body has started work on overcoming hurdles to holding early elections
The President’s Secretariat on Tuesday wrote to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) and asked it to propose dates for holding general elections within 90 days of the dissolution of the National Assembly, according to a press release.
Noting that the National Assembly had been dissolved on April 3—following a controversial ruling by former deputy speaker Qasim Khan Suri whose legality is currently under consideration before the Supreme Court of Pakistan—the Secretariat said that the ECP had been informed that elections were a requirement under the Constitution. “[Clause 5A] of Article 48 and clause 2 of Article 224 of the Constitution provide that the president shall appoint a date, not later than 90 days from the date of dissolution of the National Assembly, for holding general elections to the National Assembly,” it added.
“In order to carry out the mandate of the Constitution of announcing the date of general elections, consultation with the ECP is required under Section 57(1) of the Elections Act, 2017,” the letter written by the President’s Secretariat added.
President Alvi, on April 3, dissolved the National Assembly on the advice of the prime minister. While the legality of the entire process is pending before the Supreme Court, Alvi and Imran Khan have already initiated the process of forming an interim government and calling for elections, despite the opposition parties refusing to participate until the apex court has issued its ruling.
Sources within the ECP, meanwhile, have told local media that they would endeavor to conduct general elections within three months if the Supreme Court validates the April 3 actions of the former deputy speaker. Currently, the ECP has no members from Punjab or Khyber-Pakhunkhwa, as the government and opposition failed to cooperate and appoint new representatives from the provinces.
Similarly, the ECP has voiced concern over utilizing electronic voting machines and granting overseas Pakistanis the right to vote from their place of residence, as well as completing delimitation of constituencies, a process that usually takes over 4 months—longer than the deadline of holding early elections. The delimitation process is particularly contentious, as it requires the completion of a new census that was to be completed in August 2022—prior to the dissolution of the National Assembly.
Section 17(2) of the Elections Act, 2017 requires the ECP to carry out delimitation of constituencies after every census is officially notified. The current delimitation was on the basis of provisional results of the 2017 census under a one-time waiver.