SHC seeks report from police and Rangers on LG elections’ security

The Sindh High Court (SHC) on Friday directed the Sindh inspector general of police (IGP) and Rangers director general (DG) to file reports with regard to provision of security for holding the local bodies elections in Karachi.

During the hearing of a petition filed by the Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) against consecutive deferment of the local government elections in the city, a law officer of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), Abdullah Hanjrah, submitted that the Sindh government had once again expressed constraints for conducting the local bodies elections.

He stated that the Sindh police had once again communicated the shortage of police force in Karachi with regard to provision of security for sensitive polling stations in the city. Referring to a letter of the Sindh IGP, he submitted that 5,000 police personnel of the Sindh police had been placed on disposal of the Islamabad IGP for controlling law and order situation in the federal capital while police from other districts was still not available due to flood duties for at least three months.

He said the IGP also showed engagement of the police force in Covid-19 vaccines campaign as well as for the International Defence Exhibition and Seminar (IDEAS) 2022, scheduled to be held in the third week of November.

He added that the ECP was also holding a meeting with political parties on November 9 for holding the local bodies poll in Karachi, and requested time to file report on the outcome of the meeting.

JI counsel Usman Farooq argued that practically the PPP government in Sindh was enjoying the powers of the ECP in connection with holding the local government polls. He said the polls had been deferred thrice under ill-intentions to keep the residents of Karachi deprived of their due rights.

The lawyer representing the PTI also argued that the elections were being delayed under nefarious designs against the local government setup. He added that 12 candidates for the polls had died and others had exhausted their funds for their campaigns.

A division bench of the SHC headed by Chief Justice Ahmed Ali M Sheikh directed the Sindh IGP and Rangers to submit a report on the security of the polls and adjourned the hearing till November 10.

The ECP had earlier filed a notification submitting that the October 23 polls had been deferred on the request of Sindh government, law enforcement agencies and provincial election commissioner till availability of adequate security.

The petitioners had submitted that the term of the last local bodies had expired in August 2020, but instead of holding the elections, the Sindh government had appointed administrators throughout the province.

They submitted that the provincial government was reluctant to hold the local bodies elections and it had deliberately delayed the delimitation process by not providing suggestions, details and required maps for the delimitation of union committees as per the local government law and the 2017 election law.

They submitted that the ECP under the constitution was bound to conduct the local government polls within 120 days after the end of the previous local bodies’ term.

They submitted that the ECP’s decision with regard to postponement of the polls in Karachi was arbitrary and the provincial government was not interested in holding the elections in the Karachi division in order to retain its control over the authorities and resources of its municipal institutions. The high court was requested to direct the ECP to conduct the local bodies polls in Karachi without any further delay.