ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s election regulator issued the preliminary delimitation report of constituencies on Wednesday, with the completion of the exercise bringing it closer to holding polls in January 2024 as it said last week.
In a notification released on Aug. 17, the ECP said the initial delimitation process would be completed on Oct. 7 and preliminary proposals for delimitation, along with the report, would be published on Oct. 9.
However, the ECP announced last week it would hold elections in the last week of January 2024 and would instead complete the delimitation process by Nov. 30, instead of Dec. 14 as originally stated.
Polls were supposed to take place within 90 days of the parliament’s dissolution, but the election regulator said it needed more time to redraw hundreds of federal and provincial constituencies following the latest population census approved by the previous government in August.
“The share of seats in the National Assembly and in the Provincial Assemblies in respect of each district has been worked out on the basis of the final results of the 7th Digital
population and Housing Census-2023, officially published on 7th August, 2023,” the ECP said in a notification and an accompanying report.
As per the report, a copy of which is available with Arab News, the National Assembly comprises 266 General Seats while 60 additional seats have been reserved for women, and 10 more for non-Muslims.
Of these seats, Punjab has been allocated the most with 141, followed by Sindh with 61, the northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) with 45, southwestern Balochistan with 16, and the capital city of Islamabad has been allocated 3 seats.
Punjab has the most number of provincial seats as well at 371, followed by Sindh with 168, KP with 145, and Balochistan at 65.
Pakistan will head to the polls after over a year of intense political turmoil and economic meltdown. Business leaders in Pakistan have been urging authorities to bring political stability to the cash-strapped nation which has seen a record devaluation of the rupee and soaring inflation in the past year-and-a-half.
Election regulator issues preliminary delimitation report as Pakistan heads toward polls
https://arab.news/gscqm
Election regulator issues preliminary delimitation report as Pakistan heads toward polls
- The Election Commission of Pakistan last week said it would hold polls in late January
- Pakistan’s National Assembly comprises 266 general seats, 60 reserved for women and 10 for non-Muslims
Pakistan court directs authorities to form medical board to assess Imran Khan’s eye condition
- Islamabad High Court rejects jailed ex-PM’s request for immediate transfer to private hospital
- Medical board comprising doctors from PIMS and Shifa to submit report on possible transfer
ISLAMABAD: A Pakistani high court on Thursday directed authorities to form a medical board of government doctors to assess whether jailed former prime minister Imran Khan needs to be transferred to a hospital, his party said, following a rejection of his request to be moved to a private facility for treatment.
The development comes after the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) said last week that Khan’s vision had “improved remarkably” since he was given an Anti-VEGF injection amid concerns related to his eyesight.
Anti-VEGF injections are commonly used to treat retinal vein occlusion and other retinal vascular disorders by reducing swelling and abnormal blood vessel growth inside the eye. Prior to the development, the ex-premier had complained of rapid deterioration in vision in one of his eyes.
“The Islamabad High Court has rejected Imran Khan’s request for immediate transfer to Shifa International Hospital,” the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party said in a post on X.
“The court directed that the Chief Commissioner immediately constitute a medical board comprising doctors from PIMS and Shifa Hospital,” it continued. “The medical board will submit a report, on the basis of which the Chief Commissioner will decide whether a hospital transfer is to take place or not.”
The PTI said the court’s decision had raised questions over the judiciary’s independence.
“Delaying a medical emergency and handing it over to administrative discretion is a violation of human rights,” it said. “The issue of Imran Khan’s health is not just about one individual but reflects the entire judicial and state system.”
The 74-year-old cricketer-turned politician has been in prison since August 2023 in cases that he and his party say are politically motivated.
Khan was taken to PIMS for a medical procedure earlier this year, as his party questioned the transparency of the medical update and demanded independent access to his care.
Khan was removed from office in April 2022 through a parliamentary vote of no confidence that he says was orchestrated at the behest of the former administration in Washington by his political rivals with backing from the military. His allegation has been denied by all parties involved.
Since his imprisonment, Khan has faced multiple convictions and ongoing legal proceedings that authorities say follow due process, while his party describes them as efforts to sideline him from politics.
