Islamabad LG polls: Rana Sanaullah says ‘IHC order not enforceable’

ISLAMABAD: Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah said on Friday that the order issued by the Islamabad High Court (IHC) regarding the local government (LG) polls in the federal capital was not enforceable, ARY News reported.

While talking to ARY News today, Rana Sanaullah commented on the IHC’s order to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) to hold Islamabad LG polls tomorrow as per the announced schedule.

He said that the IHC order is not enforceable as the authorities cannot make immediate arrangements for 1,000 polling stations. Sanaullah said that threat alerts are already issued in the federal capital after the attack a few days.

The interior minister said that at least four to five months will be needed to organise the Islamabad LG elections. He added that the general elections will be held in October which needs eight to 10 months for its preparations.

IHC ruling

Islamabad high court (IHC) ordered to hold local government (LG) elections in the federal capital on December 31.

The IHC announced the reserved verdict on Islamabad LG polls against the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP).

The court accepted Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) and Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) petitions and order the ECP to hold LG elections in Islamabad on the same date December 31.

Earlier, the high court disposed of the PTI and JI plea challenging the postponement of Islamabad LG polls.

Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kayani said the delay in LG polls is a violation basic rights of citizens.

He added that the federal government give development funds to MNAs. The development funds should be used through the local government instead. The previous government also didn’t issue funds to local governments.

It is pertinent to mention here that the federal government had increased the number of union councils (UCs) in Islamabad 10 days before the scheduled polling day for local government elections, surprising candidates as well as the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP).