Protests against the Punjab elections will be held across Sindh by the PPP.
The governing party of Sindh has said that it would hold protests on April 25 and that it will not permit the country to be partitioned into two sections.
KARACHI: The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) on Sunday scheduled protests against the court-ordered polls in Punjab to be conducted on April 25 in Sindh, expressing its opposition to piecemeal elections.
Nisar Khuhro, the president of the PPP Sindh, announced that the party will stage rallies at all district administrative centres in support of holding both the province and general elections on the same day.
“Sindh will only accept same-day elections, not separate polls,” he said.
He emphasised that Elections Act of 2017 Section 69 requires that elections for the national and provincial legislatures be held on the same day.
Khuro said that there were “plans” to sway the outcomes of the two remaining provinces by conducting polls in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) first. “Holding elections on separate dates will be synonymous with dividing the country into two parts,” he claimed.
Imran Khan’s conspiracy tactics should not be supported by the courts, the PPP leader pleaded, adding that “Sindh will not permit a wedge to be drawn between the country.”
Khuro emphasised that the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) is in charge of overseeing the organisation of elections and setting the election date. He claimed that the electoral watchdog should be allowed room to perform its duty as a result.
He pleaded with the Supreme Court to form a full bench to reconsider its prior rulings involving provincial elections, warning that any interference with the ECP’s authority would be interpreted as an attempt to rig the election.
Additionally, he said that the Punjab and K-P legislatures “may be restored, if necessary,” and allowed to fulfil their constitutional terms. He said that following this, caretaker administrations could be established once more and elections could be held nationwide on the same day.
It is noteworthy that the invitation for protests came after the Supreme Court gave political parties until April 26 to reach an agreement over provincial elections; otherwise, the court warned, its ruling for the Punjab Assembly elections on May 14 will take effect.
“We are cognizant that if political dialogue extends to address all grievances, then it is likely to be a lengthy process and the correct forum for that is the political arena and political institutions,” stated a five-page written judgement issued by a three-judge panel of the supreme court.
Despite the chief justice’s efforts, the politicians seem to be clinging to their positions, and despite the encouraging first reaction, it still seems impossible to reach a consensus on the polls.
