Presidential elections mandatory within 30 days after general polls: ECP

ISLAMABAD: The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Tuesday said that it is mandatory to hold the presidential elections within 30 days after the general elections, citing Article 41(4) of the Constitution, ARY News reported.

Following the conduct of the general elections 2024 and its preliminary results, the electoral watchdog has started preparations for the presidential elections and the first session of all assemblies under constitutional bindings.

“The election commission will issue the schedule of the presidential election and public notice on March 1,” the ECP said in a statement. “According to the Constitution, one day will be given to submit the nomination papers.”

The election commission further said that the nomination papers can be submitted to any presiding officer by 12pm on March 2. “All the presidential candidates can get the nomination papers from the ECP secretariat in Islamabad or any provincial election commissioner,” it noted.

The electoral watchdog also cited Articles 91 and 130 of the Constitution which stated that the National Assembly shall meet on the 21st day following the general elections.

The ECP said all the assemblies will be formed by February 29, paving the way for the presidential election.

The statement came a day after National Assembly Speaker Raja Pervaiz Ashraf had summoned the maiden sitting of lower house of Parliament on Feb 29 as President Arif Alvi refused to summon the session on account of an ‘incomplete house’.

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In response to a summary by the Parliamentary Affairs Division last week, the president said the lower house was not complete, so he could not summon the session as requested.

Sources claimed that President Alvi wanted to delay the session till the issuance of a notification by the Election Commission of Pakistan regarding the reserved seats of the Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC), which was joined by PTI-backed lawmakers.

The Speaker would administer the oath to the newly elected members of the National Assembly. The schedule for speaker and deputy speaker elections will also be issued in the inaugural session.

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Under the Constitution, the first session of the National Assembly is required to be convened within 21 days after the general elections held on Feb 8. Section 91(2) of the Constitution says: “The National Assembly shall meet on the twenty-first day following the day on which a general election to the assembly is held, unless sooner summoned by the president.”

According to a senior official of the National Assembly Secretariat, the president is duty-bound to call the session of the NA within 21 days; otherwise, the secretariat itself could announce the session. He said the secretariat had made all necessary arrangements for the new assembly’s first session.