ISLAMABAD, June 27: The government may convene a meeting of coalition parties before asking the Election Commission to announce local bodies’ polls schedule to deliberate a demand for accountability of incumbent nazims made by 150 treasury lawmakers, according to sources. They claimed that the possibility of a two-month delay had been provided in the Local Government (amendment) Ordinance, which could be used for completing the audit of local council accounts.

It is learnt that postponement in the election schedule may be considered because of unusual heatwave and floods in the NWFP rivers.

The federal cabinet convened for Wednesday June 29 is likely to ponder over the situation arising out of a majority of treasury groups’ demand against the holding of local councils’ polls in the next couple of months.

Earlier, Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz said that the election schedule would be announced after the passage of provincial budgets. The Balochistan budget was the last in the queue and had been passed on Monday.

Informed sources told this correspondent that the ruling Pakistan Muslim League President Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain was opposing the demand of the polls’ postponement due to alleged involvement of his close relatives in the irregularities.

Talking to newsmen at his residence on Friday, Mr Hussain dismissed any possibility of postponement of the elections on the basis of alleged irregularities unearthed in some of district councils in Punjab.

Sources said that the Hussain camp had come up with an idea of taking an action against those running the campaign for postponement of the elections.

However, the MPs demanding accountability before the elections include some important government allies, including a majority of federal cabinet members and the Public Accounts Committee Chairman Malik Allah Yar who wants accountability of the nazim of his native district (Attock).

Meanwhile, Minister of State Malik Amin Aslam has claimed that the demand for accountability had been inadvertently linked to postponement of the elections.

He said the petition signed by more than 140 treasury MPs had no mention of seeking a postponement of the elections.

On the other hand, Federal Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Sher Afgan Niazi has hinted at the possibility of one and a half to two months’ delay in the elections in view of the sizzling heat and the reservations of the MPs.

Talking to newsmen on Saturday, he expressed the hope that the president and prime minister would consider the reservations of the lawmakers.

One hundred and forty treasury MPs, including ministers, had signed a petition addressed to the prime minister, and over 150 others signed another petition sent to the president, inviting their attention to reported irregularities in the accounts of 34 district governments of Punjab.

The legislators demanded postponement of the elections till the accountability process was completed.

Dr Niazi said that misappropriations of Rs5 billion had been detected in one year’s audit reports of the Punjab districts, which could swell to manifolds if three remaining audit reports were made available and public.

Answering a question, he hoped that the issue would amicably be resolved after the return of Mr Hussain who was part of the president’s entourage to Saudi Arabia.

Minister of State for Overseas Pakistanis and PML Information Secretary Tariq Azeem said that the matter would be resolved in the meeting of the coalition partners to be summoned on the return of Mr Hussain from Saudi Arabia.

Meanwhile, leaders of the Independent Democratic Group — Syed Farkhr Imam, Syeda Abida Hussain, Mir Taj Mohammad Jamali and Sardar Wazir Ahmed Jogezai — have also joined the demand for carrying out the audit of district nazims before the local councils’ polls.

In a press statement, the IDG leaders called upon the government to dissolve the local councils, appoint administrators and initiate an inquiry into irregularities and misappropriations of public resources allegedly committed by several nazims.