ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s election regulator has defended its move to delimit electoral constituencies after the approval of the 2023 population census results, which may delay the nationwide general election to as far ahead as February.
General elections in Pakistan were scheduled to be held in November this year, 90 days after the National Assembly’s dissolution. However, the outgoing government’s decision to approve the results of the 2023 digital census means the election regulator would be required to redraw hundreds of constituencies as per those results.
The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) this week issued a notification outlining its plan to finalize the delimitation of federal and provincial constituencies by December 14, effectively indicating that the polls would not take place within the customary 90-day period following the assembly dissolution.
Two major Pakistani political parties, the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) and the Imran Khan-led Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), have rejected the timeline for redrawing of national and provincial constituencies announced by the election regulator, but the ECP says it is constitutionally bound to “delimit constituencies after every census officially published.”
“The arrangements mentioned in Article 218(3) are not limited to the appointment of DROs, ROs, AROs, printing of ballot papers but also include preparation of updated Electoral Rolls in terms of Article 219(a) and delimitation of constituencies,” the regulator said in a written order Friday.
“The Commission holds and decides that carrying out fresh delimitation of constituencies on the basis of last preceding census officially published in 2023 is mandatory requirement of law as contained in section l7(2) of the Elections Act,20l7, before the ensuing General Election to ensure the fulfillment of duty under Article 2l8(3) of the Constitution and for the true representation to the electorate, political parties and contesting candidates to protect their fundamental rights.”
Pakistan’s national and two provincial assemblies were dissolved last week shortly before the expiry of their five-year term. This was followed by the appointment of a caretaker setup in the country to ensure free, fair and transparent elections within the constitutionally stipulated period, but the recent developments indicate that the polls will be delayed.
On Friday, the PTI, which has been advocating for early elections since Khan’s removal from office in April 2022, asserted the ECP’s decision to announce the polling schedule after December 14 constituted a “criminal attempt to prolong the tenure of the caretaker government” and contravened constitutional stipulations. It vowed to challenge the results of the latest census requiring delimitation in the apex court.
“[The PTI] will resist the conspiracies being hatched to deprive people of their right to vote according to the constitution,” it said.
The PPP, which was part of former prime minister Shehbaz Sharif’s outgoing administration, also opposed the ECP’s decision on Thursday, saying there was “no constitutional requirement” for redrawing new constituencies.
“PPP has been demanding elections to be held as per the constitution,” Faisal Karim Kundi, the PPP central secretary information, wrote on the X messaging platform. “There is no constitutional requirement to do delimitations but there is a constitutional requirement to hold elections within 90 days.”
The developments come amid a deepening political turmoil in the South Asian country, which began after the removal of Khan from power last year. The former premier was sentenced to three years in prison in a graft case earlier this month and is currently being held at the high-security Attock prison in the eastern Punjab province.
His conviction means he will not be able to take part in general elections as a criminal conviction bars Pakistanis from leading a party, running in elections or holding public office. Khan has appealed the conviction.
Independent analysts have raised concerns about the credibility of the impending elections due to Khan’s continued incarceration, given his status as arguably the nation’s most prominent political figure.
