The amendment designates the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) as the sole authority for setting election dates.
ISLAMABAD: (UrduPoint/Pakistan Point News-August 24th, 2023) The Chief Election Commissioner, Sultan Sikandar Raja, responded to President Arif Alvi's letter regarding the recent amendment to Clause 57 of the Election Act.
The amendment designates the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) as the sole authority for setting election dates. The CEC's written response to the president mentioned that he wouldn't meet to discuss the election date issue.
The response also highlighted that the last National Assembly was dissolved prematurely under Article 58 (1) based on the prime minister's advice, Shehbaz Sharif. Had the dissolution occurred after the completion of the full five-year term, the president would have had the power to announce the election date under Article 58 (2), which isn't the current scenario.
The CEC further noted that the delimitation process had begun based on the new census. This decision came after legal experts briefed Raja on the matter, asserting that consulting the president was unnecessary due to the amendment made before the coalition government's departure.
President Alvi cited Article 244 of the Constitution to justify his request for a meeting to determine the election date within 90 days of the premature dissolution of the National Assembly, referencing Article 48 (5) to support his stance.
