ECP says elections not possible before October

The Election Commission of Pakistan said on Thursday that it won’t be able to hold elections before October 2022.

A day earlier, President Arif Alvi had written to the commission requesting the electoral body to announce the dates for the general elections. As per the constitution, general elections need to be held within 90 days of dissolution of the National Assembly.

The commission in its reply said that delimitation of constituencies is vital to hold elections.

Despite the repeated requests from the commission, the census has not been notified which is a pre-requisite for the elections, the election commission said.

The commission can not be blamed for the government’s delay, the letter said.

“The Election Commission though fully committed to hold elections, would however require at least four additional months to complete the exercise of delimitation. Elections could safely be held honestly justly fairly as ordained in Article 18 (3) of the constitution in October 2022.”

Just two days ago, the election commission categorically rejected media reports that claimed holding the electoral exercise was not possible in 90 days. The commission claimed that it was prepared to hold general elections within three months.

An ECP spokesperson said the commission had summoned an emergency meeting to discuss the preparations for the general elections.