ECP excuses itself from consulting president over Punjab, KP elections
Last updated on: 19 February,2023 03:53 pm
ECP excuses itself from consulting president over polls
ISLAMABAD (Dunya News) - The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has excused itself from consulting President Arif Alvi over provincial assembly elections as the matter was in court.
Secretary Election Commission, in its letter, maintained that after the dissolution of the Punjab and KP assemblies, the governors were approached for the election dates as per the Constitution. It added that while the governors have responded to the letters sent by the ECP, neither has thus far announced a date for the polls.
In compliance with the Lahore High Court (LHC) orders, the commission said, a consultation was held with the Punjab governor on February 14, but he "regretted to appoint a poll date and informed that he would avail legal remedy against the judgment of the LHC as it was not binding on him".
"It is clarified that the Constitution does not empower the ECP to appoint a poll date in case of the dissolution of a provincial assembly by the governor or due to afflux of time as provided in Article 112(1) of the Constitution," the letter highlighted.
The ECP also made mention of the intra-court appeals it has filed against the order as it was asked by the LHC to hold the consultation without any such provisions having been provided in the Constitution, alongside other writ petitions presently pending in the Peshawar High Court.
It merits mention that President Alvi on Friday had invited Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Sikandar Sultan Raja for an ‘urgent meeting’ on February 20 for consultations on the dates for the polls in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (KP) and Punjab.