ISLAMABAD: The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Friday rejected the Khyber Pakh­tunkhwa government’s plea to postpone the delimitation exercise in 24 districts of the province for the up­­coming local government elections.

According to informed sources, the KP government had sought a 180-day delay in conducting the de­­limitation exercise in these 24 districts.

Meanwhile, the province’s chief secretary also wrote to the electoral watchdog, requesting a delay in local body polls due to the provincial government’s plan to ame­nd the Local Government Act, 2013.

In his letter, the chief secretary stated that the ECP had not consulted the provincial government before initiating the delimitation process. In addition, bad weather and the law and order situation in some districts were cited as reasons for the delay.

Province had sought postponement citing planned amendments to LG Act, bad weather, law and order concerns

However, sources said the electoral body deliberated on the letter and emphasised that the ECP was bound to conduct delimitation and local government elections in accordance with the existing provincial local government laws and rules under Article 140-A, Article 222(6), Sections 17, 219 and 221 of the Elections Act, 2013.

Rejecting the provincial government’s request, the ECP said that since 2024 it had continuously urged the provincial government that if amendments were required in the local government laws, they should be made in a timely manner, sources said.

Moreover, it was emphasised that consultation with the provincial government was not necessary for the delimitation exercise under the Constitution and the law, sources said.

It was maintained that while the provincial government had the power to legislate and introduce amendments, the ECP could not be compelled to stop the delimitation process under the existing local government laws merely because the government intended to introduce new legislation or amendments.

Sources said that as the KP Local Government Act, 2013 and the Local Government Rules, 2021 remain in force, the ECP had completed the initial delimitation of 23 districts and published it on March 5, 2026.

Following the publication of the preliminary delimitation lists, the ECP started receiving objections to ensure the timely completion of the delimitation process and the holding of local government elections in the province.

The ECP also said that weather conditions, transportation difficulties, and law and order situation would not hinder the delimitation process because the exercise mai­nly relies on population data, and electoral rolls are not required for it.

Sources further said that the provincial government had been inf­o­rmed that the ECP had not carried out delimitation in areas where new districts had been created or where revenue boundaries had been changed.

In this regard, the sources said the provincial government had been asked in writing to provide the ECP with the number of tehsil councils, village councils, and neighbourhood councils in these districts, along with other relevant data and maps, so that a schedule for demarcation in these districts could be issued.

Published in Dawn, March 7th, 2026