KARACHI: The Supreme Court of Pakistan directed the federal and Sindh governments on Thursday to make legislation for empowering the Election Commission of Pakistan to carry out delimitation of constituencies for the local government elections in the province.

Upholding a Sindh High Court’s verdict partially, a three-judge bench of the apex court headed by Chief Justice Tassaduq Hussain Jillani also directed the ECP to complete the delimitation process within 45 days and “ensure that the announcement of election schedule and the process of holding it is complete by or before Nov 15, 2014”.

The SHC had on Dec 30, 2013 declared as illegal the delimitation exercise carried out by the Sindh government for LG elections in the province and directed it to hold the elections as per schedule “on the position as existing prior to delimitation process”.

The SHC order had said: “The entire delimitation exercise carried out by the delimitation officers is declared to have been conducted in violation of sections 10, 11, 12 and 13 of the Sindh Local Government Act, 2013, and the guidelines issued by the government. Consequently, the final delimitation proposal published in the official gazette on 13.11.2013 for Hyderabad, Mirpurkhas, Sukkur and Larkana divisions and the notification dated 21.11.2013 published for Karachi Division both are set aside.”

Later, the provincial government and two other petitioners — Syed Mureed Ali Shah and Syed Zafar Ali Shah — moved civil appeals against the SHC verdict in the apex court.

The three-member bench, which also included Justice Khilji Arif Hussain and Justice Azmat Saeed, observed in its ruling: “Since the delimitation of constituencies for the local government is part of process of organising and holding elections honestly, justly and fairly which is constitutional mandate of the ECP, the power to carry out such delimitations should vest with the ECP.”

The short order said the power to hold LG elections stood vested in the ECP in terms of Article 140-A of the Constitution. “The ECP has been mandated to ‘organise and conduct the election and to make such arrangements as are necessary to ensure the election is conducted honestly justly, fairly and in accordance with law, and that corrupt practices are guarded against’ (Article 218 (3) of the Constitution)”.

In the verdict, the judges observed: “As the holding of local government polls has been delayed for more than nine years, which is violation of constitutional command, we are persuaded to direct the governments, federal and provincial (of Sindh), to carry out appropriate amendments/legislation to empower the ECP to initiate and carry out the process of delimitation of constituencies for the local government elections.”

While disposing of the appeals against the SHC’s verdict, the apex court ordered the ECP to ensure the announcement of election schedule and process of holding it before or by Nov 15, 2014.

The provincial government in its appeal had submitted that the delimitations of the constituencies had been carried out lawfully. It had submitted the SHC had set aside hundreds of those delimitations which were done to the complete satisfaction of the residents and the candidates and the judgement of the bench was liable to be set aside on this ground alone and elections may be allowed to be held accordingly.