KARACHI/ISLAMABAD: Following the Election Commission of Pakistan’s (ECP) announcement regarding fresh delimitations, the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) opposed the decision on Thursday, asserting that the act of drawing new constituency boundaries does not align with a “constitutional requirement.”
The electoral authority has declared its intention to conduct new delimitations throughout the nation based on a recently approved census by the Council of Common Interest (CCI), a move that will result in a delay of the country’s general elections beyond the constitutionally mandated 90-day timeframe.
According to the schedule outlined by the ECP, the process of fresh delimitation is anticipated to span almost four months, taking place from September 8 to October 7.
In response to the ECP’s declaration, PPP spokesperson Faisal Karim Kundi stated that the party has been advocating for elections to be conducted in adherence to the Constitution. He emphasized that while there exists no constitutional requirement for delimitations, conducting elections within the stipulated 90 days is indeed a constitutional obligation.
The PPP, which was a significant partner of the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM)-led government in the Centre, participated in the “unanimous” approval of the new census earlier in the month. This endorsement prompted the ECP to embark on the task of fresh delimitations before conducting elections.
PPP wants the provisions of the Election Act
Meanwhile, in line with the schedule, the revised delimitation of constituencies across the nation is expected to be officially announced in December of this year.
Under the provisions of the Election Act, the ECP expressed its obligation to establish new boundaries for numerous provincial and national assembly constituencies across Pakistan.
As outlined in Article 51 (5) of the Constitution, the allocation of National Assembly seats to each province and the federal capital is contingent upon population figures derived from the most recent census officially published.
A day prior, a petition was submitted to the Supreme Court, urging the court to compel the ECP to establish a date for national and provincial assembly elections following Article 224(2) of the Constitution. The petition, submitted by the Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA), implored the highest court to suspend the CCI’s decision made on August 5.
