ISLAMABAD: President Dr. Arif Alvi held another meeting with the caretaker Law Minister, Ahmed Irfan Aslam, to discuss the upcoming general elections in Pakistan. This meeting followed their initial discussion on the same topic a week earlier. The meeting took place at Aiwan-i-Sadr in Islamabad as part of the ongoing consultation process between the president and the interim government regarding the electoral process.
President Alvi emphasized the need to hold elections within 90 days of the dissolution of the National Assembly, as stipulated by Article 224 of the Constitution. According to this article, elections must be conducted within 90 days after the dissolution of the National Assembly, making the general election due in November. However, delays in the delimitation process may necessitate postponing the elections to late January or early February.
The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), political parties, and various stakeholders hold differing positions on the timeframe for the general elections and who has the authority to determine the final polling date. The ECP has ruled out elections this year, citing the notification of results from the new digital 2023 census and Section 17(2) of the Elections Act as reasons for pushing the elections beyond November 9.
President Alvi had previously invited the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) to discuss and determine an appropriate election date. However, the CEC declined, citing an amendment to the Elections Act 2017 that grants the ECP unilateral authority to announce election dates without presidential consultation.
Interim Prime Minister Anwaarul Haq Kakar also emphasized that, according to the law, the ECP has the prerogative to decide the election date. However, he added that the caretaker government would adhere to a binding judgment from the Supreme Court if it mandated holding elections within the prescribed 90-day period.
Growing Demands for Elections
There have been increasing calls from various quarters, including political parties like the PPP and PTI, for either the president or the ECP to announce the election date. The PTI reiterated its demand for President Alvi to announce the election date, citing constitutional obligations and the responsibility to allow the public to choose their elected representatives.
