Defence ministry requests top court to recall its April 4 decision

• Election commission says “getting impossible” to hold polls SC date.

The Ministry of Defence Tuesday filed a sealed petition in the Supreme Court with a request to hold elections simultaneously across the country.

The Defence Ministery appealed to the Apex Court of the country that it should withdraw its orders of election in Punjab and issue an order to hold elections simultaneously throughout Pakistan.

It is stated in the sealed application from the Defence Ministry that keeping in view the ongoing security situation in the country, the Supreme Court should withdraw the decision of April 5.

The Defence Ministry further said in the petition that the SC should order the elections after the completion of the term of the provincial assemblies of Sindh and Balochistan.

Early today, the country’s top intelligence officers including the ISI director general have called on Chief Justice of Pakistan Umar Ata Bandial to discuss the issue of providing security during the elections in Punjab.

According to sources, those who met the CJP included Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) director general, Military Intelligence (MI) director general, Military Operations (MO) director general and the defence secretary.

The meeting which lasted for over three hours was held in CJP’s chamber on Monday.

Justice Ijazul Ahsan and Justice Muneeb Akhtar were also present in the CJP’s chamber during the meeting.

The intelligence officers updated the top justices about the country’s security situation, the sources said.

The Supreme Court had earlier sought a report from the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) about security provisions during the elections by April 17.

On the other hand, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) Tuesday submitted a report to the Supreme Court (SC), stating that it had not received funds for holding elections in Punjab from the State Bank.

The apex court had ordered the submission of a progress report regarding the provision of funds for elections in Punjab.

The second deadline set by the Supreme Court for releasing funds to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) for elections in Punjab also expired.

The Supreme Court had ordered the State Bank to release the funds by April 17 during an in-chamber hearing on April 14 last.

The State Bank had been ordered to release the funds directly.

It is worth mentioning that the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) also submitted its report to the Supreme Court yesterday regarding the transfer of funds for elections.

According to the sources, the SBP’s report contained reasons for the non-transfer of the funds.

State Bank officials filed the report in the office of the Supreme Court’s Registrar.

The impugned order dated 22.03.2023 made by the Election Commission of Pakistan is declared to be unconstitutional, without lawful authority or jurisdiction, void ab-initio, of no legal effect and is hereby quashed,” the ruling said. “Neither the Constitution nor the law empowers the Commission to extend the date of elections beyond the 90 days period as provided in Article 224(2) of the Constitution.”

The ECP on March 22 announced that the elections in Punjab would be held on October 8. The date was earlier set on April 30, in consultation with President Arif Alvi, but was later extended in view of the security situation and the non-provision of funds from the government.

But despite the court’s orders, the government did not budge and got a resolution passed through parliament against the verdict, clearly stating that it would not provide funds to the ECP for polls.

Following the government’s move, the apex court directed the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) to release a total of Rs21 billion to the election commission for holding polls, but even after the deadline passed on April 17, the central bank did not release the funds.

In a session of the National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Finance and Revenue a day earlier, SBP Acting Governor Sima Kamil said the central bank had allocated funds — on the SC’s orders — for the polls but lacked the authority to release them.

In a report filed in the top court earlier today, the ECP said the conduct of the election on May 14 is getting impossible due to the non-provision of funds and security forces for maintaining law and order.