The Pakistan Election Commission has decided to hold the election of local governments in Punjab during the last week of December this year after a hearing of delays in the organizations of the polls. The decision was made by a four-member bench that was chairman of the Chief Election Commissioner Sikandar Sultan Raja.
The Election Commission in Pakistan (ECP) said the election will be implemented in accordance with the local Government Act 2022.
During the hearing, ECP officials said efforts had been made to hold local elections in Sindh, Balochistan, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and Cantonment Boards, but provincial governments, especially Punjab, caused delays and obstacles.
The Punjab government has changed the law of the local government several times during this period, which further delays elections despite repeated boundary exercises and messages from the ECP. The concept of Punjab’s local bodies expired on December 31, 2021, and no election has been held for over three years.
Officials also clarified that there are no legal barriers to hold elections under the Local Government Act in 2022. If electronic voting machines (EVMS) are not available, ballots can be used.
Election Commissioner Sikandar Sultan Raja criticized the delay of three years and nine months as a disgrace to both the ECP and the governments involved. He emphasized the Commission’s constitutional duty to ensure that elections are held and added that if a government does not want to hold local elections, it must change the Constitution accordingly.
The Punjab government explained that flooding and assembly sessions had delayed the approval of the new local government’s law, but assured the Commission that the bill would be presented in the next assembly session.
The ECP’s decision is expected to be advertised carefully, after which delimitation immediately begins.
Lahore High Court will hear a related petition of Jamaat-e-Islami on October 14, which the ECP will answer.
