WEB DESK
Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Friday directed the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) to hold local bodies elections in the capital city on December 31 (tomorrow).
The elections will be held on 101 Union Councils (UCs) of Islamabad. Notably, the National Assembly on December 22 passed The Islamabad Capital Territory Local Government (Amendment) Bill, 2022. The bill was introduced by Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah. The amendment bill gave legal cover to increment in the number of UCs in Islamabad from 101 to 125. Even after the increment in the number of UCs in Islamabad, the commission decided to hold the elections on December 31.
However, on December 24, the IHC nullified the ECP’s order and ordered the commission to hear grievances of stakeholders. Following this, the electoral body decided to delay polls but Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Ali Nawaz Awan filed a petition against it. Today, IHC announced its reserved verdict and voided the ECP’s decision to postpone the polls. The notification of the interior ministry has also been repealed.
Govt decides to file intra court appeal
Sources reported that the federal government has decided to file intra court appeal in the IHC for the suspension of LG elections in Islamabad. Sources claimed that it would not be possible to hold polls in a such a short span. Citing sources, it has been reported that ECP staff were also out of station due to long weekend which would make it impossible to transport polling material to polling stations. Sources told that with no option left, the federal government has decided to file an intra court appeal in IHC.
Imran Khan congratulates Islamabad residents
PTI Chairman Imran Khan congratulated the people of Islamabad on the IHC verdict on local bodies elections. “The people of Islamabad will elect their local government through voting, “Imran said in a video message posted on the PTI official Twitter handle. He expressed that it was unfortunate that the ECP had underhand agreement with the ‘cabal’ imposed on the country. He urged Islamabad residents to fully participate in the local government elections.
