ISLAMABAD: Minister for Law and Justice Azam Nazeer Tarar has reiterated the government’s demand for a full court bench to address issues surrounding the upcoming elections in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
Speaking to foreign media in Islamabad on Thursday, Tarar said holding simultaneous elections across the country is the solution to the constitutional, political, and legal complications.
He warned that holding elections in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa now and again in October after the completion of the constitutional term of the National Assembly and provincial assemblies of Sindh and Balochistan would create another crisis.
Tarar said the judgment of the Supreme Court may discourage the Election Commission, and that the government believes the judgment of the three-member bench is not a constitutional order unless the controversy of decisions by 4-3 and 3-2 judges is resolved.
He added that holding elections in Punjab with a political government in power at the centre may raise questions about its transparency, fairness, and impartiality.
The minister suggested that the Supreme Court should have considered the ground realities, concerns, and security threats in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa while handing down its verdict.
He also raised concerns over the financial conditions of the country, and the impracticality of printing electoral material twice. The minister added the Constitution provides room to address all election-related matters under Article 254.
He emphasized the need for a conducive atmosphere for conducting elections and pointed out that holding polls based on two different censuses could raise concerns among political parties.
