Until the new election, each board will operate under a two-man caretaker set-up
RAWALPINDI:
The four-year election period for elected representatives in 37 out of 44 cantonal boards across the country has ended. New elections will now be held in these cantons.
In view of the completion of their terms of office, the elected members of these Cantonment Boards have been relieved from their posts and caretaker boards are now being formed. The Ministry of Defense has issued a letter to the Military Lands & Cantonments (MLC) department.
Until the new election, each board will operate under a two-person caretaker board consisting of a nominated civilian member and a nominated military personnel.
Each Cantonment Board will send the names of these members to the Regional Director of the MLC. These decisions were taken at a meeting chaired by the MLC Director General.
The four-year term of the elected representatives in 37 cantonment boards – including Rawalpindi, Chaklala, Lahore, Karachi and others – ended on October 10, 2025.
Later, the positions of elected vice-chairmen and elected board members were terminated with immediate effect, and they were barred from participating in future board meetings.
For the remaining seven cantonal boards, a decision will be made when the term of office of their elected members expires. Until the next municipal election, these 37 canton boards will function under a two-man caretaker board.
Commanding officers of all cantonments have been instructed to submit the names of one nominated civilian member and one nominated military member by November 26 before the end of office hours.
The civilian member will not participate in the upcoming cantonment election, while the military member will be nominated by the relevant station headquarters.
These names must be sent to the MLC Director General through the MLC Regional Director. Decisions from the last meeting of the elected boards must also be submitted to the two-person caretaker board.
Four years ago local government elections were held in all cantonment boards on party basis under the supervision of Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP). However, the election period for the elected members is counted from the date on which they take the oath.
Cantonments are permanent bases of the Pakistan Armed Forces administered by Cantonment Boards under the control of the MLC. Cantonments are established under and regulated by the Cantonments Act 1924. In recent times, the demographic nature of most post-independence cantonments has changed.
