ISLAMABAD: The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) is considering moving the apex court against the Lahore High Court (LHC) order to stay elections to reserved seats in local bodies of Punjab scheduled for Sept 1, 2 and 3.

“We are awaiting a copy of the LHC judgement (issued on Tuesday). The secretariat will soon submit a proposal to challenge the order in the Supreme Court to the commission for approval,” an official of the ECP told Dawn.

He said the local government polls were being conducted on the orders of the apex court which had directed the commission to resume the process from where it had stopped.

The official said the LHC order had been announced after political parties ganged up to seek postponement of the polls and not on the basis of any legal point.

He said since the process of LG elections in Punjab had commenced in Aug 2015, the schedule had remained in the field for most of the time and it had adversely affected the process of postings and transfers of government officials due to a ban imposed with the issuance of the schedule.

As many as 30 Central Superior Services officials were awaiting their field postings after completing training, the official added.

He said ballot papers had been printed and all arrangements, including transportation of election material, had either been completed or were in the process. A hefty amount of Rs6.25 billion has been spent on the gigantic exercise of local government elections in addition to Rs6bn spent by other institutions for deployment of security forces.

He pointed out that according to a decision of the Indian Supreme Court, no court could interfere in the operations of the Indian Election Commission.

He said political parties had taken a plea in the LHC that changes had been made in the law to reduce and increase the number of reserved seats and that they had prepared their lists of candidates on the basis of previous numbers. Hence, the holding of elections on the basis of new numbers will infringe their rights.

But the court was told that no increase had been made in the number of reserved seats for women, labourers and minorities and the reduction would in no way infringe any party’s rights.

Election annulled, officials suspended

The ECP has cancelled the election of chairman and vice chairman of the Matli municipal committee and suspended the district returning officer of Badin and returning officers of Matli for disqualifying all other candidates and declaring two elected unopposed on the seats.

New district returning officer and returning officers have been appointed and polling will take place on Thursday (today).

The ECP which met here on Wednesday held that the returning officers could not disqualify a candidate and ordered an inquiry into the episode.

Published in Dawn, August 25th, 2016