ISLAMABAD: During a meeting held today, the Chief Election Commissioner made the determination that there will be no meeting with President Dr. Arif Alvi. The response to the letter will be communicated via written correspondence. CEC wrote a letter in response to President’s invitation.

The CEC took the decision after holding a meeting with the senior ECP officials on Thursday.

In a meeting, the legal team advised CEC to have  a meeting with the president. The Chief Election Commissioner decided not to meet him. He stated that the answer to the President’s letter will be given through a letter.

Furthermore, he emphasized that it is the responsibility of the Election Commission of Pakistan to establish the election date, and it does not fall under the President’s jurisdiction.

The Chief Election Commissioner has written letter in response to the President’s letter.

He stated that, “We withhold the president and his position in high regard. The president had the authority to offer advice in deciding the election date, prior to the amendment in the Election Act of 2017. However, following the amendment, this responsibility solely rests with the Election Commission, which determines the polling day. The president would only provide advice in cases where they dissolve the assembly themselves.”

Yesterday, President Alvi composed a letter to the CEC wherein he referred to the constitutional responsibility of the president to determine a date for general elections within 90 days following the dissolution of the National Assembly (NA).

In the letter, the president highlighted that the dissolution of the NA on August 9, based on the advice of the then-prime minister, Shehbaz Sharif, deviated from its prescribed timeframe of three day.

President Alvi Writes To CEC Sultan Raja For A Meeting To Fix ‘Appropriate Date’ For The Election

Alvi wrote a letter to the CEC today, referencing the constitutional obligation for the president to finalize a date for general elections within 90 days subsequent to the dissolution of the National Assembly (NA).

In the letter, the president pointed out that the NA was dissolved on August 9 based on the counsel of the then-prime minister, Shehbaz Sharif, a departure from its mandated timeframe of three days.