MOST of the country, apart from Balochistan, which has already conducted the exercise, is finally on the path to holding local government elections, largely thanks to the efforts and persistence of the higher judiciary.

And interestingly, it is also the courts that are actively working to address the anomalies that stand in the way of representative, democratic local polls countrywide.

On Monday, the Lahore High Court declared that non-party polls in cantonments were “unconstitutional” and ordered the Election Commission of Pakistan to hold these on a party basis.

Know more: LHC orders LG elections on party-basis in Punjab Cantonment Board

This is indeed a welcome decision as there is no reason why LG polls in cantonments — scheduled to be held this month — should be conducted on a non-party basis. For all purposes, most cantonments across Pakistan have today become residential areas much like the ‘civilian’ parts of town where citizens from all walks of life reside along with military personnel, retired or otherwise.

Gone are the days when these facilities used to be located far from population centres and housed only those in uniform. In recognition of these realities, the residents of cantonments must have the right to choose local representatives with political affiliations.

If party-based polls will now take place countrywide, there is no logical reason why party-less elections should be held in the Islamabad Capital Territory.

As per the bill passed in the National Assembly recently, the federal capital is supposed to have non-party polls.

This legislation needs to be reviewed. What is ironic is that while the courts are pushing for party-based polls, the military, in the areas it controls, has shown resistance to the idea, while the PML-N wants party-less elections in Islamabad lest one of its political opponents ends up heading the capital’s local government.

It needs to be realised that non-party LG polls, as well as party-less elections to the national legislature, are amongst the legacies of military rule; a democratic ethos demands that people be free to choose candidates with political affiliations from the local level up.

After much nudging and prodding by the judiciary, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Sindh and Punjab are all now working to hold the polls before the Supreme Court’s September deadline arrives.

KP is due to hold the elections in May while Sindh and Punjab’s polls are due in September. As we have said before, local polls help instil the democratic spirit at the grass-roots level and local governments serve as nurseries for politicians who can be groomed to serve at the provincial and national levels.

What is more, the absence of elected local governments for an extended period has had a negative effect on civic life where both infrastructure and services are concerned. Representative rule at the local level is essential to provide timely solutions to people at the neighbourhood and town level, without citizens having to line up before the provincial bureaucracy or lawmakers.

Published in Dawn, April 1st, 2015

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