From Abid Usman
LAHORE: The Lahore High Court (LHC) on Monday sought a reply from the federal government by October 19 in response to a plea challenging the Election Commission of Pakistan’s (ECP) notification for conducting delimitation of constituencies. The petitioner, Muhammad Muqsit Saleem, argued that this process will cause a delay in elections beyond the statutory period of 90 days, as mandated by the Elections Act.
During the hearing, presided over by Justice Abid Aziz Sheikh, the ECP requested the dismissal of the plea, arguing that the petitioner is not a concerned party. Meanwhile, Justice Sheikh also summoned the Attorney General of Pakistan to assist the court.
The petitioner prayed the court to declare the ECP’s notification, issued on August 17, as unconstitutional. He further requested that the relevant authorities cease following the unconstitutional directives of the notification and take legitimate steps to ensure elections are conducted within 90 days, as guaranteed by the Constitution. He also sought the suspension of the notification’s execution until a decision was reached.
The petitioner stated that the notification, granting extensive powers for delimitation, will delay elections beyond the 90-day limit stipulated by Article 224 of the Constitution and Section 17(2) of the Elections Act. According to him, the constituencies’ limits were already published by the commission on August 5 last year.
The caretaker government’s role is to oversee the country’s administration leading up to general elections, ensuring they are free, fair, and transparent, as well as maintaining law and order during the electoral process, he stated.
However, if elections are not held within the constitutionally specified timeframe, the caretaker government’s mandate should typically end. Given the current political climate, resolving any legal or constitutional issues without close scrutiny is challenging, the petitioner argued.
The constitution provides for both 90-day and 60-day election periods. Article 224(1) states that a general election to the National Assembly or a Provincial Assembly must occur within sixty days of the assembly’s term expiration. Article 224(2) stipulates that when the National Assembly or a provincial assembly is dissolved, a general election must be held within 90 days of the dissolution, with results declared no later than 14 days after the polls close.
