Local bodies elections: ECP wants 2017 Census results published by March 1

ISLAMABAD: The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) Thursday called for official publication of 2017 Census results till March 1 keeping in view the sensitivity of the issue, as Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan had opposed delimitation on the basis of provisional data terming it against the law.

In this connection, the commission held a hearing on the holding of local government elections in Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Representatives from both the provinces presented their respective positions, which were identical.

Secretary local government and advocate general Balochistan took the position that since the results of 2017 census had not been officially published, delimitation on the basis of provisional census data was against the law and inappropriate.

He emphasized that the provincial government wanted to amend the Local Government Act and that the proposed amendment would be presented in the next meeting of the cabinet for approval. To this, the ECP gave 10 days to the Balochistan government to make the necessary amendments.

Assisting the Commission, the deputy attorney general said the federal government was working for official publication of 2017 Census results. The Commission directed the deputy attorney general and Secretary IPC to immediately take up the matter with the appropriate forum of the federal government and ensure that the results of official census were released before March 1. The Commission will now meet on February 15.