Pakistan: Elections delayed further as Law minister says polls not possible till new census approved

Pakistan's Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar said the Election Commission is to complete the delimitation process within 120 days and holding the general elections based on the 2023 digital census would not be feasible before January or February of 2024, The News International reported.

Islamabad [Pakistan]: Pakistan's Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar said holding the general elections based on the 2023 digital census was not feasible before January or February of 2024, The News International reported. Talking to Geo News on Saturday, Tarar said a meeting of the Council of Common Interest (CCI) headed by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif "unanimously" approved new census results.

Referring the Article 51 of the Constitution, the law minister said that the general elections for the national and provincial assemblies will be conducted as per the limits of the constituencies published by the Commission, The News International reported. The Law minister said the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) is to complete the delimitation process within an outer limit of 120 days. However, it is the prerogative of the ECP how soon they start the process, he said.

He maintained that the census 2023 results show that provinces’ share in the general seats of the National Assembly will not change in the next elections, The News International reported. The outer limit of 120 days can be reduced by effective work, the law minister said, adding that 54 more days are required for holding the general elections. The entire process should not go beyond 150 to 165 days, he added. The minister said that all eight members of the CCI agreed on holding the upcoming elections on the basis of Census 2023, The News International reported.

PM Shehbaz Sharif, all four chief ministers and other members of the body were among the attendees at the meeting, he added. Earlier in the day, the Council of Common Interest (CCI) meeting “unanimously” approved the 2023 census. PM Shehbaz Sharif chaired a meeting of the CCI to decide the fate of the 2023 census amid reports of division among the coalition partners over the matter.

The meeting was attended by Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah and Punjab Caretaker Chief Minister Mohsin Naqvi, according to sources. Finance Minister Ishaq Dar, Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal, Aviation Minister Khawaja Saad Rafique, Commerce Minister Syed Naveed Qamar, Adviser to the PM on Kashmir Affairs and Gilgit Baltistan Qamar Zaman Kaira and other officials also participated in the huddle, The News International reported.

According to the sources, the Ministry of Planning briefed the participants on the digital census. Moreover, the results of the 2023 census were also presented during the CCI meeting. The meeting was also briefed that Pakistan's population has reached 240.10 million. (ANI)