KP elections to be held on May 28, announces Governor Ghulam Ali

ISLAMABAD: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Governor Haji Ghulam Ali Tuesday gave May 28 as the date for conducting the general election in the province after his meeting with the Chief Election Commissioner Sikandar Sultan Raja.

The meeting, which was also attended by other members and officials of the electoral authority, was held for consultation on the date for holding general polls in KP.

The development came after the KP governor met with President Dr Arif Alvi at the Aiwan-e-Sadr to discuss matters related to conducting the general polls in the province in light of Article 224 (2) of the Constitution of Pakistan and the Supreme Court of Pakistan's order.

The president had advised the KP governor to conduct general elections in the province within the time mentioned in the supreme court's letter.

The country's top court had, in a split verdict on March 1, ruled that elections for KP and Punjab assemblies should be held within 90 days.

The president's advice came after the KP governor called on him. 

President Alvi asked the KP governor to ensure implementation of the apex court's order in "letter and spirit", wherein it had been directed that the KP governor must, after consultation with the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), forthwith appoint a date for the holding of the general election to the provincial Assembly "to avoid any complication as almost a period of two weeks has already passed by".

"The president emphasised the need for upholding the Constitution and holding general elections within the given time period, that had been mandated by the Constitution, further affirmed by the Supreme Court of Pakistan, and was essential for strengthening parliamentary democracy in the country," a statement by the president's house read.

It should be noted that the direction to conduct the polls was given by the apex court in the suo motu notice verdict, which was announced by Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial — the chair of a five-member bench hearing the case, hearings for which were held for two consecutive days.

Apart from Justice Bandial, the bench comprised Justice Munib Akhtar, Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar, Justice Mansoor Ali Shah, and Justice Jamal Mandokhail.

In the verdict, the apex court noted that there are "different aspects and requirements" for holding polls but ruled that one thing that was "absolutely crucial is the timeframe" for the polls. It added that Constitution envisages two periods for holding polls — 60 days in case the assembly is dissolved after its term is completed and 90 days in case the assembly is dissolved before the expiry of its term.

— Thumbnail image is a still from a video