General elections in tribal districts to be held in June this year

PESHAWAR: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) government to hold general elections against 16 general seats of the provincial assembly in the merged tribal districts, in June this year, Radio Pakistan reported on Tuesday.

According to official sources, the election will take place for the very first time on the newly created fifteen seats of the provincial assembly (PK 100 to PK 115) in tribal districts that merged into the province in wake of 25th Constitutional amendment.

The merger of erstwhile FATA has increased the strength of total general seats in the provincial legislature from 99 to 115.

It may be recalled that the, regular courts on Monday, had started functioning in tribal districts of the erstwhile Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA).

According to Registrar Peshawar High Court Khawaja Wajihud Din, twenty-eight judicial officers and eighteen prosecutors were posted in the tribal districts.

FATA amendment bill

Earlier, a constitutional amendment [The Constitution (Thirty-First Amendment) Bill 2018] for the merger of Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province was passed in the National Assembly on May 24 – 2018.

Later, the Upper House [Senate] approved the constitutional amendment bill with majority for the merger of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa a day after its approval from the Lower House [National Assembly].

The amendment reduces the number of seats in the National Assembly from 342 to 336. The members of the National Assembly from Fata to be elected in the 2018 election shall continue till dissolution of the Lower House. Elections on these provincial legislature seats shall be held within one year after the general elections 2018.