Bilawal Bhutto directs PPP workers to prepare for elections

LAHORE: Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Chairman and Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari has directed the party workers to prepare for elections following the Supreme Court (SC) verdict of elections in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) to be held within 90 days, ARY News reported on Wednesday.

The foreign minister issued the directives while chairing a meeting of PPP leaders in Lahore, where he arrived for a three-day visit.

The meeting discussed the country’s overall political situation and the Supreme Court (SC) verdict of elections in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) to be held within 90 days.

Speaking on the occasion, Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said that whether the elections are held within three months or after that, his party is always ready. He directed the party organisations and workers to prepare for the polls.

He also directed the PPP leadership to complete the listing of candidates for national and provincial assemblies elections ‘in a week’. “Candidates who are performing well should be awarded tickets”, he added.

SC verdict

The Supreme Court, in a 3-2 verdict, ruled on Wednesday that elections in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab should be held within 90 days.

CJP Justice Umar Ata Bandial, Justice Munib Akhtar and Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar supported the verdict, while Justice Jamal Mandokhail and Justice Mansoor Ali Shah opposed the admissibility of the suo moto notice and dissented from the majority verdict.

Justice Shah and Justice Mandokhail in their dissenting notes agreed with the position of Justice Yahya Afridi and Justice Athar Minallah. “The matter was already being heard in the high courts, Supreme Court cannot take suo moto notice on the undertrial cases in the high courts.”

The short verdict stated that the Election Commission of Pakistan failed in discharging its role in the election. The announcement of the election date in KP is the responsibility of the provincial governor, while the president has the authority as per law and constitution to fix the election date in Punjab.

The verdict further stated a consultation to fix the date of elections in Punjab, if they are not possible on April 9, the date announced by the president.