CJP takes suo moto notice on delay in Punjab, KP elections

• Supreme Court took suo moto notice on delay in Punjab, KP elections
• A nine-member larger bench headed by CJP will hear the case
• CJP said there is lack of clarity on a matter of high constitutional importance

ISLAMABAD: Supreme Court of Pakistan has taken suo motu notice of the delay in conducting elections of two provincial assemblies in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

A nine-member larger bench headed by Chief Justice of Pakistan Umar Ata Bandial will hear the case related to the elections. The suo motu notice case will be heard tomorrow (Thursday) at 2 PM after the chief justice took notice of the Registrar’s note.

The bench includes Justice Ijazul Ahsan, Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah, Justice Munib Akhtar, Justice Yahya Afridi, Justice Sayyed Mazahar Ali Akbar Naqvi, Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail, Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar and Justice Athar Minallah.

A two-member bench of the Supreme Court comprising Justice Ejaz-ul-Ahsan Justice Mansoor Ali Shah had referred the matter to the Chief Justice for hearing, saying that the delay in provincial assembly elections was a violation of the Constitution. The  bench had discussed the matter during the hearing of the CCPO  Lahore Ghulam Mehmood Dogar case.

During the hearing, Justice Ahsan observed that the Constitution obliges to hold elections within 90 days and it is the election commission’s responsibility to conduct elections. The Supreme Court also directed Chief Election Commissioner to submit a detailed report on the obstacles faced by the electoral body in holding polls.

The development comes two days after President Dr Arif Alvi unilaterally announced April 9 as the date for elections to the provincial assemblies. The decision was made after the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) refused to hold consultations on the election date and maintained the president was not the authority on elections of provincial assemblies.

In the notice, the Chief Justice said more than a month had passed since the two provincial assemblies were dissolved and “it seems prima facie that even the matter of appointing the date of the general elections, which is the first step towards the holding of the elections, has still not been resolved”.

“Constitutional authorities appear to hold divergent, and perhaps even conflicting, views on the issue. Thus, several federal ministers appear to have contested the authority asserted by the president. Since ministers act under the constitutional rule of collective responsibility it appears, prima facie, that this is the view taken by the federal cabinet as a whole,” he said.

He said there is a lack of clarity on a matter of high constitutional importance. He noted that statements attributed to the electoral watchdog showed that it was not being provided the “requisite assistance and support, in particular by the provision of necessary funds, personnel and security, as would enable it to hold the general elections in accordance with the Constitution”.

The CJP said the issues raised require immediate consideration and resolution by the court. He said several provisions of the Constitution need to be considered and relevant sections of the Elections Act.

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