Khursheed wants Election Act amended for timely polls

ISLAMABAD: Opposition Leader in the National Assembly Syed Khursheed Shah on Thursday asked for legislation to remove legal lacunas in Section 22 of the Election Act expressing fear that the election might delay if changes were not made to the Act.

“The final notification of delimitation of constituencies is to be notified by May 4, while Section 22 (of the Election Act) says 120 days will be required after the delimitation,” he said while talking to newsmen in his chamber at the Parliament House.

The election, he said, would be held 60 days after the expiry of the National Assembly’s tenure which meant if the assembly completed its tenure on June 1 then the election should be held by August 1, but it seemed impossible in the presence of Section 22.

Khursheed said the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) should immediately examine Section 22 of Election Act and read it with Section 14 and decide what to do. “If the legislation to amend Section 22 was not made then the election would be challenged in the courts,” he said, adding, “All of us want election on time, so it is necessary that the National Assembly session be summoned for legislation to remove flaws in the Act for holding the general election on time.”

Khursheed said he was ready to take up this issue with the chief election commissioner. Asked if he would approach the government on this issue, he said the government should contact the opposition instead.

“It’s not the opposition’s task to contact the government but of the government to contact the opposition on it,” he said. “Once this information comes up in the media the Election Commission of Pakistan may take it up. But we’re ready to take up this issue with the chief election commissioner,” he said.

Meanwhile, Opposition Leader in the National Assembly Syed Khursheed and PML-Q senior leader Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi held consultations on the caretaker prime minister here on Thursday.

Secretary General PML-Q Tariq Bashir Cheema was also present in the meeting. The two leaders shared with each other the names of caretaker prime minister. Khursheed said there was still time for finalisation of the name and as such he was considering more names.

The two decided to consider more names in this regard after which a second round of meeting will be held. Answering a query while talking to the media after the meeting, Elahi said south Punjab province was talk of the town these days but it was he who first suggested it in a public meeting in Multan in 2011.

“On that occasion, all my colleagues present there, including federal minister Sardar Owais Leghari, Ishaq Khakwani, Javed Ali, who is PML-N leader now, Rana Qasim Noon and many others, are now making this demand,” he said.

“I visited south Punjab in this regard but after ‘salaam’ none of the colleagues was behind me. I found all of them standing here and there.” “We have always supported the people of south Punjab and during our five-year tenure we undertook ideal and revolutionary works for them.”

It is to be mentioned that so far only the PTI has suggested the names of Justice (retd) Tassaduq Hussain Jelani, ex-Governor State Bank of Pakistan Dr Ishrat Hussain and ex-commerce minister Abdul Razak Dawood for the caretaker prime minister.

Meanwhile, Chairman Senate Sadiq Sanjrani on Thursday met Syed Khursheed Shah. Sanjrani came to the chamber of Khursheed Shah at the Parliament House along with the Opposition Leader in the Senate Sherry Rehman and Farooq H Naek.