President Arif Alvi on Wednesday urged the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) to “immediately announce” the date for polls in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab and put an end to “dangerous speculative propaganda” on both the provincial assembly and general elections. The Punjab and KP assemblies were dissolved on Jan 18 and Jan 14, respectively, after former prime minister Imran Khan had announced that his governments in the two provinces would dissolve their assemblies to pave the way for fresh elections. In a letter addressed to Chief Election Commissioner Sikandar Sultan Raja today, a copy of which is available with Dawn.com, Alvi said that the election of an assembly is to be held within 90 days of the dissolution as provided by Article 224(2) of the Constitution. He highlighted that the conduct and holding of elections was the primary and essential duty of the ECP as per PART VIII of the Constitution, particularly Article 218 (3) which assigned the duty to the ECP to ensure the holding of fair and free elections. The president conveyed that it was ultimately the commission, which if it failed to discharge its functions and duties, was to be held responsible and answerable for the violation of the Constitution of the country. Alvi stressed that he was under the oath “to preserve, protect and defend the Constitution” being the head of the state…
Source:dawnnews.com
Friday, May 1, 2026
