Islamabad (Web Desk): The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has dismissed the proposal to postpone the general elections, emphasizing that the established polling date of February 8 was mutually determined with the President of Pakistan.
In a letter addressed to the Joint Secretary (Legislation) of the Senate, the ECP conveyed that it would not be prudent to postpone the general elections at this stage. Additionally, the resolution of the upper house of Parliament cannot be currently implemented.
“The ECP has already directed the caretaker government to ensure the maintenance of law and order during elections. This includes enhancing the security framework to create a favorable environment for peaceful and credible conduct of the 2024 general elections,” the electoral body said.
The letter stated that the ECP has made a commitment before the Supreme Court to conduct the general elections on February 8, 2024.
Similarly, it is worth noting that previous general elections and local government elections have taken place during the winter season.
Meanwhile, Independent Senator Dilawar Khan has written a letter to the Senate Chairman, expressing concern that the ECP has not taken any steps to implement his resolution passed on January 5, which proposed the postponement of elections.
On January 5, a session of the upper house of parliament adopted a resolution, seeking the postponement of the general elections over security and bad weather concerns.
The resolution, which was not initially scheduled for discussion, was introduced by Senator Dilawar Khan and received support primarily from Balochistan Awami Party (BAP) senators.
Last week, independent Senator Hidayatullah also submitted a second resolution to the upper house of Parliament seeking delay in the general elections.
Moreover, a third resolution third resolution, seeking a delay in the general elections slated for February 8, was submitted to the Senate Secretariat on Sunday.
The resolution was moved by an independent senator from erstwhile Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA), Hilal-ur-Rehman, citing harsh weather conditions and security situation as reasons for deferring the polls.
In the resolution, Senator Rehman, said extreme cold weather and snowfall would create difficulties for the citizens to cast ballots in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), adding that candidates participating in the polls encountered numerous challenges in running election campaigns due to “security concerns” in KP.