ECP orders fresh schedule for Islamabad local government elections

The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Wednesday directed its officials to prepare and issue a fresh schedule for

The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Wednesday directed its officials to prepare and issue a fresh schedule for local government elections in Islamabad, moving to end a delay that has kept the capital without an elected local administration for more than five years.

A five-member ECP bench, headed by Chief Election Commissioner Sikandar Sultan Raja, issued the order during a hearing on repeated delays in holding the polls. The commission directed its office to proceed under the Islamabad Capital Territory Local Government Act, 2015, which remains legally in force.

The bench included members Nisar Ahmed Durrani, Shah Muhammad Jatoi, Babar Hassan Bharwana and retired Justice Ikramullah Khan. Interior Secretary Ahmed Raza Sarwar and Additional Deputy Commissioner Uzair Ali Khan, representing the Islamabad chief commissioner, appeared before the commission.

The ECP instructed its officials to complete all necessary steps promptly and in accordance with the law to ensure the electoral process could move forward.

During the hearing, ECP Special Secretary Zafar Iqbal Malik informed the commission that constituency delimitations had been carried out six times and election schedules had been issued four times. However, the process repeatedly stalled because of changes to the legal framework governing local government elections.

Malik said the Islamabad Capital Territory Local Government (Amendment) Ordinance, 2026, expired on September 6 before replacement legislation could be enacted. The commission had completed the latest round of delimitations, with final boundaries published on October 14, but the rules required to proceed under the proposed framework remained unresolved.

He added that the ECP had sent reminders to the Interior Ministry regarding the ordinance’s expiry. The Ministry of Law had declined to vet the proposed rules because the legal basis for them had lapsed.

The interior secretary agreed with the facts presented but argued that returning to the 2015 law would require the process to be reconsidered. Chief Election Commissioner Raja rejected the concern, saying the existing delimitations would not be affected by reverting to the earlier legislation.

Raja expressed concern over the prolonged delay, observing that the circumstances suggested the government was unwilling to hold local government elections in the capital. He stressed that the Constitution required elections to be conducted under the applicable local government law.

The commission said it was proceeding with the election process under its constitutional responsibilities and the relevant provisions of the Elections Act, 2017, and the ICT Local Government Act, 2015.

Islamabad’s previous local government was elected in 2015, when elections were held for 50 union councils. The PML-N won the polls, and Sheikh Anser Aziz became the capital’s first mayor. The local government’s term expired in February 2021, but fresh elections have yet to take place.

The number of union councils was subsequently increased from 50 to 101 and then to 125. Elections scheduled for December 31, 2022, were postponed after the government amended the law shortly before polling to increase the number of union councils, citing the need for fresh administrative arrangements.

The ECP later announced elections for February 15, 2026, but withdrew the schedule after President Asif Ali Zardari promulgated an amendment ordinance proposing three town corporations aligned with National Assembly constituencies. The changes required fresh delimitation and further legal arrangements.

Although a parliamentary committee approved replacement legislation in September, the bill was not enacted before the ordinance expired.

Under Article 140-A of the Constitution and Section 219(4) of the Elections Act, 2017, local government elections are required to be held within 120 days of the expiry of the relevant local government’s term.