IHC restrains Election Commission from holding LBs polls in Islamabad

Expressing surprise as to what was the need of promulgation of an ordinance for the holding of local bodies’ (LBs) elections in Islamabad, the Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Thursday barred the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) from going ahead with the exercise in the federal capital under the new arrangement, reported 24NewsHD TV channel.  

Justice Muhsin Akhtar Kiani, who was hearing a set of petitions filed by the Capital Development Authority (CDA) Labour Union, CDA Officers’ Association and others in which they had posed the question that what would be the status of polls’ when the ordinance ceased to be effective, remarked that an ordinance could only be issued when the country was in a state of war and the National Assembly’s session could not be convened. “How on earth you can promulgate the ordinance when the parliament is already in session? What was the requirement for an ordinance when the Local Government Act already existed?” he questioned, and ordered the government to first table the ordinance in parliament for its approval. 

On the occasion, the government’s counsel said that the parliament’s session was over on November 19, 2021 while the ordinance was issued four days later, on November 23. “The ordinance was issued because the ECP had set November 25 as the deadline,” he explained. 

Justice Kiani remarked that the local bodies had completed their term on February 14, 2021. “Did the situation remain the same until November?” he asked. 

The government’s counsel replied that the ECP had ordered the interior ministry to enact a law within 10 days.    

He further said that LBs’ elections had already been held in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP). 

The judge replied that the LBs representatives were toothless. “Did the federal government release funds to them,” he asked. 

The court then adjourned the hearing of the case until March 3, 2022.

Reporter Ihtesham Kiani