Punjab LG election delayed, again

ISLAMABAD: The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has postponed the local government elections in Punjab, initially planned for the last week of December, due to new legislation.

On October 8, the ECP had resolved to conduct these long-overdue elections under the existing local government law, announcing the immediate start of the delimitation process, to be completed within two months. It expressed regret over the delays, attributing them to the provincial government.

However, on Tuesday following a meeting at the ECP Secretariat, chaired by Chief Election Commissioner Sikandar Sultan Raja, the decision was made to proceed under the newly amended Punjab Local Government Act 2025, approved by the Governor, which repealed the 2022 Act. Consequently, the ongoing delimitation schedule was withdrawn. The ECP secretary informed the meeting that notifications issued under the 2022 Act for delimitation must also be revoked.

In accordance with Article 140-A of the Constitution and Section 219(4) of the Elections Act, the ECP is required to hold elections within 120 days of the expiry of local government bodies’ terms. The ECP stopped the delimitation process and abandoned plans for elections in Punjab this year, granting the province four weeks to finalise delimitation and demarcation rules at the Punjab government’s request. The ECP stressed that no further extensions would be permitted, and failure to meet the deadline would prompt a review and appropriate action.

The PTI-led Punjab government had dissolved local government institutions in 2019, which the Supreme Court later restored them. These bodies completed their term on December 31, 2021, with elections due by April 2022. However, for various reasons, local government polls in Pakistan’s largest province are yet to take place.

Meanwhile, the Election Commission of Pakistan on Tuesday withdrew its recent notifications concerning the schedule for constituency delimitation and the appointment of related committees and authorities.

Issuing a fresh notification, the electoral body stated the decision was made “consequent upon the order of the Commission dated October 21, 2025.” The notification formally withdraws the directives issued on October 9, 2025, which had initiated the delimitation process, established delimitation committees and authorities, and ordered the freezing of existing administrative boundaries in Punjab Province. The withdrawal is effective immediately and will remain in force until further orders.