Senate elections: ECP starts issuing nomination papers in Punjab

LAHORE: Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has announced starting the issuance of nomination papers to candidates in Punjab for the upcoming Senate elections, ARY News reported on Thursday.

The ECP Punjab asked candidates to receive nomination papers from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm. The candidates having political affiliations were asked to submit the nomination papers along with party tickets except those contesting the polls as independent candidates.

The candidates will have to open an account in a bank regarding their election expenses, whereas, the limit of election expenses is Rs1.5 million, stated the commission.

Read: PTI to award Senate election tickets on merit: PM

The election commission will unveil the schedule of Senate elections on February 11.

Moreover, ECP has also started preparations for holding Upper House polls in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP). The commission started accepting the nomination papers from the candidates in KP.

Four candidates including Abbas Afridi, Faisal Salimur Rehman, Asad Salimur Rehman and Masoodur Rehman have submitted their nomination papers to the ECP so far.

The political parties have also expedited preparations and consultation process for finalising its candidates for Senate polls which is likely to be held in March.

The PTI had formed an 11-member parliamentary board headed by Prime Minister Imran Khan on February 1 for the award of tickets. The board comprises Shafqat Mehmood, Shah Mehmood Qureshi, Pervez Khattak, Asad Umar, Usman Buzdar, Mehmood Khan and Aamir Kiyani.

Read: ‘Imran Khan wants to eliminate vote trading; Senate polls likely in March’

The major opposition parties including Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N) and Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) have also started consultations after taking the decision to take part in the upcoming Senate polls.

For Senate polls on 48 seats, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) had commenced its preparations in January which would be concluded in three phases. The work for the deputation of returning officers and polling staff for the upcoming Senate polls.

The polls will be organised for 48 seats in the Upper House as legislators will vote for the candidates contesting on 11 seats each in Punjab and Sindh, 12 each in Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) and two in Islamabad.