Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Umar Ata Bandial said on Thursday that a delay in elections will allow “negative forces” to swing into action in the country and will “begin to play tricks”.

The CJP’s remarks came during a hearing of the review petition filed by the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) against the apex court’s decision to conduct polls in Punjab on May 14.

The bench hearing the pleas also includes Justice Munib Akhtar and Justice Ijazul Ahsan; this is the same bench that issued the directive on April 4.

Following the bench’s order, the electoral watchdog had informed the apex court that it could not conduct elections owing to security concerns and a paucity of funds.

It then filed a review petition, stating that appointing a date for elections is not the Supreme Court’s mandate.

The petition

The electoral watchdog filed a review petition in the apex court against its order passed on April 4, setting May 14 as the date for holding elections in the province of Punjab.

It had submitted that, under the Constitution, the power of the announcement of the date for the general elections is vested in bodies other than any judicial institution; therefore, the impugned order under review had “breached the salient principle of the trichotomy of powers and thus is not sustainable”.

Elections — principally a domain of the election commission under Article 218(3) of the Constitution read with other provisions of the Constitution — is the sole responsibility of the Election Commission of Pakistan, the ECP had contended.

Moreover, the ECP had submitted that in the presence of an elected government in Punjab, the general elections to the National Assembly cannot be conducted fairly.

“Fair elections cannot take place in the presence of an elected government in Punjab”, the review petition had stated adding that the voter/electorate is likely to vote in favour of the candidates of the political party which has the elected government in Punjab. 

More to follow…