ECP proposes holding Punjab local govt elections on Dec 14

ISLAMABAD: The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Friday proposed holding local government elections in Punjab on Dec 14 and sent a draft of the suggested schedule to the Punjab chief secretary for consultation. In a letter seen by Dawn, Chaudhry Nadeem Qasim, additional director general for local government elections, forwarded the draft schedule to the Punjab chief secretary on the commission’s behalf. He also sought the provincial government’s opinion on the proposed timelines so that a final schedule could be notified after approval from the ECP. According to the proposed schedule, nomination papers will be filed from Oct 27 to 30, while scrutiny will be conducted from Nov 2 to 5. Appeals against acceptance or rejection of papers can be filed from Nov 7 to 11, and will be decided by tribunals between Nov 12 and 16. As per the letter, the last proposed date for withdrawal of candidature is Nov 18. The final list of candidates will be displayed on Nov 19 and election symbols will be allotted on Nov 20. Polling is proposed for Dec 14, with returning officers to announce results by Dec 17, the letter said. The letter also referred to a consultative meeting held on Aug 20 between the ECP and a provincial cabinet committee on the announcement of the poll date. It is worth noting that during the meeting, the ECP had agreed to the provincial government’s proposal to hold polls between Dec 15 and Jan 15, 2027. On Aug 6, the Punjab cabinet had approved an allocation of Rs12.5 billion for holding local government elections in the province. The last local government elections in Punjab were held in 2015 under the Punjab Local Government Act, 2013. Polling took place in phases between Oct and Dec 2015, and elected councils assumed office in 2017 after indirect elections for mayors and chairpersons. Since then, local body polls in Punjab have experienced repeated delays. The PTI government had dissolved the elected local bodies in April 2019 before they completed their tenure. The move was later struck down by the Supreme Court, which restored them. They eventually completed their term on Dec 31, 2021. Successive provincial governments repeatedly amended or replaced the Punjab Local Government Act. Each legislative change required the ECP to restart preparations, including delimitation and election planning. Changing laws and administrative delays by successive governments contributed significantly to the postponement of the local body elections. Under Article 140A of the Constitution and the Elections Act, local government elections should be held within 120 days of the expiry of local bodies. Since the councils’ term ended in Dec 2021, elections were due by April 2022 but they have been repeatedly postponed.