Summary
- The Islamabad High Court (IHC) has suspended the schedule for local government elections in the federal capital, issuing a stay order against the Election Commission of Pakistan’s (ECP) notification dated October 21.
- The court’s intervention came a day after Chief Election Commissioner Sikandar Sultan Raja accused the federal government of attempting to obstruct the local government elections in Islamabad.
- He maintained that the federal government should not issue directions to the ECP and insisted that the Islamabad local government elections would be held.
The Islamabad High Court (IHC) has suspended the schedule for local government elections in the federal capital, issuing a stay order against the Election Commission of Pakistan’s (ECP) notification dated October 21.
Justice Umair Majeed Malik issued the order on Friday and directed the ECP to submit its response by November 26. The court also issued a notice to the electoral body in connection with the matter.
The development has put the upcoming local government elections in Islamabad on hold, despite the ECP’s earlier announcement of the electoral schedule.
Islamabad has been without an elected local government since February 2021, when the previous local government’s term expired. Fresh elections have remained pending due to various legal and administrative complications.
Under Section 219(4) of the Elections Act, 2017, the ECP is required to hold local government elections within 120 days of the expiry of the previous local government’s term.
The court’s intervention came a day after Chief Election Commissioner Sikandar Sultan Raja accused the federal government of attempting to obstruct the local government elections in Islamabad.
While hearing a case concerning an alleged violation of the election code of conduct during the recent NA-77 by-election in Gujranwala, Raja expressed concern over the government’s reported decision not to assign teachers duties for the Islamabad polls.
He questioned how the ECP would arrange election staff if teachers were not made available, stressing that the commission was responsible for conducting elections independently.
The chief election commissioner also objected to what he described as government interference in the electoral process. He maintained that the federal government should not issue directions to the ECP and insisted that the Islamabad local government elections would be held.
The high court’s latest order, however, has suspended the election schedule for now, with the matter set to proceed after the ECP s
ubmits its response.
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