Islamabad: The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has made a decisive move, scheduling the upcoming general elections to take place in the second week of February 2024.
Sources familiar with the matter, who spoke to ARY News, indicate that the ECP is likely to unveil the official election schedule after December 2023.
ECP insiders have revealed that the timeline for the elections will be unveiled 54 days after the completion of delimitation, the process of defining constituencies.
In parallel, the ECP has initiated consultations with major political parties to discuss the impending general elections in the country.
The electoral regulatory body has chosen to engage with leaders of these significant political entities to chart the course of action for the approaching national elections.
Agenda items for these meetings encompass a range of subjects, including delineating constituency boundaries, updating the roster of eligible voters, finalizing the election process logistics, and establishing a timetable for the electoral events.
Earlier, Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Sikandar Sultan Raja opted not to meet with the president, expressing this decision through a written message. The message underlined the ECP’s profound respect for President Arif Alvi. The communication clarified that, according to the Election Amendment Act, there is no requirement for consultation regarding the election date.
While the president retains the authority to announce the election date upon the dissolution of the assembly, the ECP maintains its independence in determining the date of the elections, as per the conveyed message.
It’s noteworthy that President Arif Alvi extended an invitation to Chief Election Commissioner Sikandar Sultan Raja for a meeting on Wednesday to deliberate the decision on the general election date.
