British envoy calls for 'free, transparent' elections in Pakistan

British High Commissioner to Pakistan Jane Marriot has held an "introductory" meeting with Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Sikandar Sultan Raja and called for free and transparent elections in Pakistan.

The British diplomat took to X — formerly known as Twitter — to apprise of the "important" huddle held with the head of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) in Islamabad on Wednesday.

"We agreed that it’s crucial the country sees free, credible, transparent and inclusive elections in line with the law," Marriot wrote on X.

The meeting between the UK envoy and CEC Raja comes at a time when the country is awaiting the announcement for the next general polls which, at the moment, remain in limbo owing to the matter of delimitation of constituencies following the digital census held earlier this year.

This is not the first time that a foreign envoy has met the ECP chief and commented on the conduct of general polls in the country.

Last month, United States' Ambassador Donald Blome also met CEC Raja to reaffirm his country's support for "free and fair elections", adding that it would work to strengthen the US-Pakistan relationship with "whomever the Pakistani people choose".

"The United States remains committed to working to broaden and deepen the US-Pakistan relationship with whomever the Pakistani people choose," a statement from the US embassy's spokesperson read.

The US ambassador reiterated that choosing Pakistan's future leaders is for the Pakistani people to decide, the statement added.

Blome also reaffirmed that America would back transparent elections "conducted in accordance with Pakistan’s laws and constitution".

The date of elections in Pakistan remains a contentious matter, particularly following the dissolution of the National Assembly on August 9 by the then-Shehbaz Sharif-led government.

The Sindh and Balochistan assemblies, meanwhile, were also prematurely dissolved to allow the electoral authority to hold elections in the country within 90 days.

Under the law, polls should be held in 60 days if the legislature completes its constitutional tenure, however, the deadline is three months if assemblies are dissolved prematurely.

Furthermore, the general elections in the country are likely to be delayed after the Council of Common Interest (CCI), days before the dissolution of the assemblies, approved the 7th Population and Housing Census 2023.

The move led to concerns from several quarters, including the Pakistan Peoples Party, which was part of the coalition government that ratified the census.

According to Article 51 (5) of the Constitution, the seats of the National Assembly to each province and the federal capital shall be allocated on the basis of population as per the new census.

Following CCI's approval, the ECP on August 17 announced the schedule of new delimitations which exceeded the November 9th 90-day constitutional limit, almost making sure that the elections are likely to be held post the 90-day mark.

As per the schedule announced by the ECP:

• September 8 to October 7 — Delimitation of the constituencies to be held across the country.
• October 10 to November 8 — Proposals regarding constituencies to be submitted.
• September 5 to September 7 — A quota of constituencies of the national and provincial assemblies to be allocated.
• August 21 — Constituency committees of four provinces to be established.
• August 31 — Administrative matters related to the constituencies to be completed.
• November 10 to December 9 — ECP to decide on the objections to the constituencies.
• December 14 — Final publication of the delimitation.