ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court asked law officers of the federal government and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on Thursday to assist it in a case relating to the procedure for election of mayors, deputy mayors, chairmen, vice chairmen and members of reserved seats in Sindh.

A three-judge bench headed by Justice Gulzar Ahmed issued notices to Attorney General Salman Aslam Butt and the advocate general of KP during the hearing of a Sindh government’s appeal against the Feb 10 Sindh High Court order.

In its judgment on applications filed by the MQM and PML-F, the high court had declared as void recent amendments to the local government law whereby secret balloting was replaced with show of hands for electing mayors, deputy mayors and other local government representatives in Sindh.

On the other hand, the Sindh government through its appeal before the apex court contended that the high court had unduly impaired, restrained and restricted the executive powers through its order.

The Supreme Court had on Feb 17 stayed the elections in Sindh for mayors, deputy mayors, chairmen and deputy chairmen till a final decision on the matter.

On Thursday, Dr Babar Awan, representing the PPP, argued that any decision by the Supreme Court ordering the election of mayors, deputy mayors and other officials through secret balloting would adversely affect the KP elections where such offices had been filled through show of hands.

In its appeal, the Sindh government argued that the provincial autonomy as desired by the people of Pakistan and reflected in the 18th Amendment envisaged strengthening of the provincial legislature and executive authorities.

The Sindh Local Government Act was amended with the intention of electing the mayor, deputy mayor, chairman, vice chairman and members of reserved seats in a transparent, fair and free manner in a bid to avoid corrupt practices which was the mandate of Article 219 of the Constitution, it argued.

The appeal said that no question of public importance with reference to enforcement of any fundamental rights conferred by Chapter 1, Part II of the Constitution was involved in the facts and circumstances of the petitions filed by the MQM and PML-F in the high court. The SHC had decided the petitions without jurisdiction, it argued.

The Sindh government questioned whether the SHC erred in directing the Election Commission to immediately fix a date for conducting the election through secret balloting before the indirect election to the seats reserved for women, youth, labrourers and non-Muslims who had to elect mayors, deputy mayors and others.

It said the principle of separation of power provided that the executive power was vested in and was to solely exercise by the government duly elected by the people.

Published in Dawn, March 11th, 2016