KARACHI: The leadership of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) has reaffirmed the party’s stance to conduct the upcoming general elections within a 90-day timeframe. They have emphasized that surpassing this three-month period for elections would lead to a constitutional crisis in the country. PPP has emphasized that it does not want any delay in the elections due to new delimitations.
Following a meeting of their central executive committee (CEC), PPP’s prominent figures convened a press conference to address the matters of elections and the country’s worsening economic situation.
On August 17, the ECP disclosed the timeline for new delimitation procedures. It is based on the recently approved census by the CCI earlier this month.
The schedule put forth by the ECP indicates that the process of fresh delimitation would extend for almost four months. As a result, this timeline means that it is not possible to conduct the general elections within the prescribed 90-day period after the dissolution of the provincial and national assemblies.
PPP Vice President Senator Sherry Rehman criticized the 2023 census as being “controversial.” She highlighted that the CCI meeting had clearly stated that the elections would not experience any delays due to the new delimitations.
Rehman highlighted the unanimous agreement among all CEC members that there should be no postponement of the polls. She underlined that since there were no alterations made to the distribution of seats in the National Assembly, there should be no justification for delaying the elections.
The senior PPP leader further conveyed that her party intends to hold discussions with the ECP, followed by another internal meeting. She emphasized that the caretaker government does not possess the authority to alter the Constitution. She commented that amending the law is beyond the mandate of the interim setup.
“Census Does not require Fresh Delimitations”
Expressing their stance, former Chief Minister of Sindh, Murad Ali Shah, stated that they are opposed to any postponement of elections due to the implementation of new delimitations. He emphasized the importance of adhering to the 90-day election timeline.
Shah further remarked that the current census does not necessitate the need for fresh delimitations. He highlighted that the Constitution does not mandate the requirement for conducting fresh delimitations following a census.
Meanwhile, party’s Nayyar Bukhari said that the next CEC meeting will discuss the ECP huddle — set to take place on August 29. Bukhari emphasized that while the judiciary can interpret the Constitution, it lacks the authority to rewrite it. He added that the exclusive right to make amendments to the Constitution lies with the parliament.
