—- Clarifies Verdict on Punjab election remained unchanged
Staff Report
ISLAMABAD: A three-member Supreme Court bench will hear a petition on Friday (tomorrow), requesting the top court to order that elections be held on the same day across the country.
The bench will be headed by Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Umar Ata Bandial and comprising Justice Ijaz Ul Ahsan and Justice Munib Akhtar.
The petition filed by a citizen, Sardar Kashif Khan, nominated the federal government, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), and major political parties as respondents.
The petition states it would be “in the interests of justice and equity as well as fulfilment of the constitutional imperatives (and balancing of competing constitutional requirements) if the general elections of National Assembly and all four provincial assemblies were held together rather than in piecemeal”.
If elections across the country were held on the same day, they would be done under caretaker setups which would “ensure that the general elections are carried out honestly, justly, fairly and in accordance with law”.
“Having political governments in power in the provinces when general elections are being held for the National Assembly has the potential to adversely affect the National Assembly election more than in the inverse situation since provincial governments have operational control of all day-to-day affairs in the respective
NA constituencies (other than those in ICT),” the petition added.
Moreover, holding elections simultaneously would save billions of rupees and the expenses could be included in the budget for the upcoming year.
The armed forces and police would also only be required once instead of multiple times, allowing them to devote more time to their principal duties, it stated. The move would free up law enforcement agencies to focus on improving the country’s law and order situation instead.
The petition contended that elections to the Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) assemblies would be held based on the results of the 2017 census while those to the National, Sindh and Balochistan assemblies would be conducted on the latest census figures. “Such a situation should preferably be avoided as it could also lead to unforeseen complications,” it urged.
It pointed out that the difference in the date previously ordered by the apex court for holding polls in Punjab and the one suggested by the government in October was “only a few months so there was no significant harm or delay”.
The petition further said that the parliament could address the issues of delaying the Punjab and KP polls by passing a constitutional amendment.
Meanwhile, the Supreme Court Thursday clarified that negotiations between the ruling Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) and the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) to end the political deadlock on the general election’s timeframe were initiated in a volunteer capacity and that the top court did not issue any direction in this regard.
In a three-page verdict of the April 27 proceedings of the Punjab election delay case, the apex court said its April 4 verdict directing the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) to hold Punjab elections on May 14 “remained unchanged”.
“The Court appreciates the efforts of all parties to try to end the current political impasse and in particular their voluntary agreement to enter into negotiations to choose a single date for holding General Elections to the National Assembly and the four Provincial Assemblies,” read the verdict issued by a three-member bench led by Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial.
The apex court also clarified that the “negotiations between the two sides were entirely to be their own effort, without any direction or order of the Court in this regard in any manner”.
“It was also made clear that the order of 04.04.2023 in Const. P.5 of 2023 remained unchanged,” the verdict added.
