Pakistan's Election Commission Announces Date For Elections In Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

This decision comes after the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Governor initially suggested May 28 as the election date but later called for a delay until October 8, citing security concerns.

New Delhi: The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) announced that elections in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa will be held on October 8, the same day as Punjab's polls, ANI reported on Wednesday citing Geo News.

The ECP stated in a notification that the election schedule will be issued in due course of time, as per the news report.

In a notification, the ECP said, “…the Election Commission of Pakistan notifies 8 October, 2023 as poll date for the General Elections to the Provincial Assembly of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The Election Programme for election under Section 57(2) of the Elections Act, 2017 will be issued in due course of time.”

This decision comes after the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Governor initially suggested May 28 as the election date but later called for a delay until October 8, citing security concerns.

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) is expected to be unhappy with the decision as it has already opposed the ECP's delay of the Punjab elections. However, the Pakistani government has welcomed the ECP's decision, ANI reported.

Pakistan’s President Arif Alvi had given the date of April 30 after Supreme Court’s order, but the ECP announced a delay on March 22, citing security concerns as the primary reason for the change.

Following the Election Commission of Pakistan's (ECP) decision to postpone the elections, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) approached the Supreme Court and the case is being heard by a five-member bench, including Chief Justice of Pakistan Umar Ata Bandial. The ECP withdrew its earlier announcement for the Punjab polls after both security and financial bodies refused to support the electoral body during the upcoming elections.

Last week, Pakistan's Information Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb welcomed the ECP's decision to delay the Punjab elections, ANI reported citing The News International.

In a statement, Aurangzeb stated that the election panel took the decision after consulting all stakeholders. She said, “The election commission has taken the decision after consulting all stakeholders. The ECP took the decision after considering the economic, political and security situation”, as per the news report.

She stressed that under Article 218 of the Constitution, the commission is obligated to ensure that transparent, impartial, and fair elections are held in Pakistan. Aurangzeb further added that conducting the elections on the scheduled date in the two provinces would have led to a controversial outcome.