In a fresh blow to Pakistan, the country is faced with yet another constitutional crisis after the Election Commission (EC) postponed the Punjab elections till October, citing ‘security threats’.
The EC’s refusal comes despite the Supreme Court’s clear orders and the apex court is likely to intervene if the polls are not transparent or held on time, the Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) has warned.
Following the EC’s decision, former Pakistan prime minister Imran Khan’s party Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) has demanded the Supreme Court to take suo motu notice of the delay.
In a surprise move, the Election Commission on Wednesday announced the postponement of the upcoming elections in Punjab till October 8. The polls were initially scheduled to be held on April 30 but security reasons were cited as the major cause for the change in plan.
In the light of Supreme Court’s split ruling last month, President Arif Alvi announced the date for the Punjab polls after consulting the EC.
The commission said that after considering reports of different stakeholders, including the interior and defence ministries, it reached the conclusion that “it is not possible to hold and organise elections honestly, fairly, justly in a peaceful manner and in accordance with the Constitution and law”.
It said the elections for the Punjab Assembly will now be held on October 8, also withdrawing the schedule it had previously released for the elections on March 8.
Earlier this month, the Supreme Court had ordered that President Arif Alvi should announce the date of the Punjab Assembly election, while the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) governor would set the election date of the provincial assembly in consultation with the EC.
A five-judge larger bench of the apex court on March 1 gave a 3-2 split verdict on a suo motu case about the election for the two provincial assemblies after holding hearing for two days.
On Wednesday, Chief Justice of Pakistan Justice Umer Ata Bandial said the ECP was a constitutional institution that the apex court will protect and if there was any malpractice in transparent elections in time, then the court will intervene.
PTI chairman Imran Khan on Wednesday night said that the Election Commission violated the Constitution by postponing the Punjab Assembly elections, asking everyone to stand behind the legal community “with expectation that they will protect the Constitution”.
“By postponing Punjab elections till Oct ECP has violated the Constitution. Today everyone must stand behind the legal community – the judiciary & lawyers – with expectation that they will protect Constitution. For if this is accepted today than [then] it is the end of Rule of Law in Pak,” Imran Khan wrote on his official Twitter handle.