By polls, local elections on schedule: ECP

ISLAMABAD: The Election Commission of Pakistan on Tuesday rejected the government’s plea and decided to hold by-elections to national and provincial assemblies besides local polls in the Karachi Division on schedule.

The by-polls in eight NA and three provincial constituencies will be held on Oct 16 whereas local elections in Karachi Division will be conducted on Oct 23. However, in view of the security situation, by-polls in NA-45, Kurram district, will be conducted later.

The decision to this effect was taken at an election commission meeting here. Chief Election Commissioner Sikandar Sultan Raja chaired the meeting and welcomed the participants, including secretaries of the election commission, interior ministry, defence, and chief secretaries, Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Sindh IGPs.

The CEC laid stress on the importance of peaceful conduct of elections. The ECP secretary briefed the meeting that the commission had completed all the arrangements and now required the services of authorities concerned so that elections could be held peacefully.

The interior, defence secretaries, chief secretaries, IGPs and representatives of other security agencies presented their views in the meeting. The commission, after hearing the views of all the officers and representatives, decided that, apart from the National Assembly seat of Kurram district, where law and order is not satisfactory, elections in all other National and Provincial Assembly constituencies would be held on schedule i.e. Oct 16, 2022. The second phase of local elections in all the districts in Karachi Division will be held on Oct 23, 2022.