Staff Report
ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Monday clubbed the appeals pertaining to local body elections and sought cabinet minutes and summary with regard to the increase in the number of union councils.
The bench instructed the AAG to satisfy the bench on the next hearing regarding the increase in the number of union councils.
A two-judge bench comprising Justice Aamer Farooq and Justice Saman Raffat Imtiaz heard the appeals of ECP, federation, and others regarding the LG polls in ICT.
PML-N’s Leader Tariq Fazal Chaudhry, Additional Attorney General Munawar Dogal, Director General Law ECP, and petitioners’ lawyers appeared before the court.
Justice Aamer Farooq remarked that what would happen now as the elections were not held as per the orders of the single-member bench. There was also no election schedule before the bench, he noted.
The petitioners’ lawyer Raja Inam Amin Minhas said that it was not possible to conduct elections on December 31, in the short time span. The single-member bench issued this order without hearing them, he added.
The court asked how the complainants of the voters’ list were affected in this case as the ECP could still hear their grievances at this time. Justice Aamer Farooq remarked that the decision of the single-member bench was only regarding the elections in 101 UCs. The matter of the voters list would be seen by the ECP instead of this court, he said. –Agencies
