SC to hear ECP’s plea seeking review of Punjab polls order today
A three-member bench of the Supreme Court (SC) will hear the Election Commission of Pakistan’s (ECP) plea asking the top court to revisit its April 4 order of holding elections to the Punjab Assembly on May 14.
The petition is being heard a day after the court-ordered election deadline lapsed and the same day that the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) is expected to stage a protest outside the SC against the judiciary for allegedly favouring PTI chief Imran Khan.
The bench will comprise Chief Justice of Pakistan Umar Ata Bandial and Justices Ijazul Ahsan and Munib Akhtar, the same bench that had issued the order for holding elections in Punjab on May 14. The hearing is expected to begin at 12:30pm.
In a una*n*imous judgment on April 4, the bench had quashed the electoral body’s decision to extend the date for polls in the province from April 10 to Oct 8 and fixed May 14 as the new date.
It had also directed the federal government to release Rs21 billion for elections in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and to provide a security plan to the ECP regarding the polls. Moreover, the court had instructed relevant authorities to keep it in the loop.
However, in reports submitted to the apex court in subsequent days, the ECP had said the ruling coalition was reluctant in releasing the funds.
It had contended that staggering polls by holding them in Punjab and KP separately, before elsewhere, was not feasible since it would incur more expenses compared to holding the exercise on one day. It had further said that an already depleted security apparatus would require weeks in advance for its mobilisation.
On May 3, with fewer than two weeks to the May 14 election date, the election commission had filed its plea seeking a review of the court’s April 4 order.
The review petition, filed through Advocate Sajeel Shehryar Swati, was submitted a day after the government and PTI developed a consensus on holding elections across the country on the same day. Both parties, however, had failed to agree on a date for the elections.
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https://www.dawn.com/news/1753364/sc-to-hear-ecps-plea-seeking-review-of-punjab-polls-order-today