The verdict in the suo motu case for delaying the announcement of the date of the elections in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is due today, and all eyes in the country are on the Supreme Court of Pakistan.
The ruling will be announced at 11 a.m. by a five-member bench consisting of Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial, Justice Mansoor Ali Shah, Justice Munib Akhtar, Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail, and Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar.
The court reserved its verdict on Tuesday, and it was expected to be announced that day, but the apex court decided to announce it on Wednesday.
The matter garnered attention as the ruling in this regard will settle the authorities of the president, governor, and Election Commission of Pakistan about the announcement of the election date in case of the dissolution of provincial assemblies.
Earlier, the court directed political parties to consult their leaderships and draw a consensus for the elections, but PML-N asked for more time, citing the unavailability of ruling alliance members.
During the hearing, Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Umar Ata Bandial remarked that the Elections Act, 2017 clearly states that the president can announce the date for elections.
Since the dissolution of the assemblies, the governors of both provinces and the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) are reluctant to announce a date for general elections in the provinces. After both parties remained failed to fulfill their duties, President Arif Alvi unilaterally announced that polls will be held in April – a move that was widely criticized by the government of coalition parties.
During the hearing, the five-judge bench heard arguments from Barrister Ali Zafar, counsel for the speakers of both provinces who filed a petition regarding the election delay.
When the hearing began, CJP Bandial announced that four judges had resigned from the bench, but that the remaining members would continue to hear the case for constitutional interpretation.
Following that, Zafar began his arguments by stating that the Punjab chief minister had sent the summary for the assembly’s dissolution to the governor. However, the governor refused to sign the summary, and the assembly was automatically dissolved 48 hours later.
As per the Constitution, the election should be held not more than 90 days after the dissolution of the assembly, he said, adding that the Punjab Assembly was dissolved on Jan 14. He informed the bench the matter was later taken to the Lahore High Court (LHC), which ordered the ECP to hold a consultation with the governor to decide a date for the election. But the meeting remained inconclusive.
“Can the elections be delayed by someone?” Justice Mazhar asked. To this, Zafar said no one could delay the elections as per the Constitution.
Justice Mazhar remarked ping pong was being played over the announcement of the election date.
At one point, CJP Bandial inquired as to the reason for the long and complex adjournment of an intra-court appeal in the LHC. To this, Advocate Azhar Siddique informed the court that the ECP had requested more time to respond to the LHC, and thus the hearing was postponed.
He also stated that a contempt of court plea was filed in the LHC on February 14 and that the ECP had yet to respond.
Justice Akhtar also spoke about the situation in KP. At this point, Zafar stated that the governor had dissolved the assembly, but he had asked the electoral body to consult with stakeholders. He stated that the governor had not yet set a date for elections and cited security concerns in his letter.
Meanwhile, the ECP’s lawyer informed the bench that three constitutional petitions were pending in the Peshawar High Court (PHC).
CJP Bandial then enquired as to why the high court had issued a 21-day notice to the parties.
At one point, CJP Bandial stated that the elections act clearly states that the president can also issue the election date. He stated that it remains to be seen what the president can discuss with the ECP.
The CJP stated that the Supreme Court wished to conclude the case tomorrow and adjourned the hearing until 9:30 p.m. tomorrow.
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