LONDON: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Saturday reiterated his demand to hold polls throughout the country on the same day, saying that conducting elections in Punjab before they are held in other provinces is a “conspiracy” against the country.
While general elections in Pakistan are scheduled to be held in October, the PTI’s move to dissolve the provincial assemblies in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab provinces has created problems for the government, which says it is economically viable to hold polls across the country on the same day.
Pakistan’s constitution categorically states that polls should be held within 90 days of the dissolution of assemblies. The South Asian country, however, has historically held voting across all provinces on the same day.
Relations between the government and Pakistan’s top court also soured when the Supreme Court started hearing a case on election delays in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab, directing authorities to hold polls in Punjab by May 14 if political parties fail to reach a consensus on a date for elections.
Sharif and former prime minister Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party have held a series of discussions since April to finalize a date for elections across Pakistan. So far, the two sides have failed to come to an agreement on when polls should be held.
“I have always said Punjab is not the big brother,” Sharif told reporters outside Avenfield House in London where he had arrived to meet his elder brother Nawaz Sharif.
“All four [provinces of Pakistan] are equal brothers. From this point of view, conducting elections in Punjab only is a conspiracy against Pakistan, it is a conspiracy against Punjab.”
Sharif said the only way to thwart this conspiracy would be to hold elections across the country on the same day.
While the May 14 deadline to hold polls in Punjab rolls closer, none of the requirements for elections, including releasing funds and arranging security for poll duty, have been arranged by Pakistan’s election commission, making it unlikely that the court’s deadline will be met.
Former PM Khan has warned the government against violating the Supreme Court’s directives against holding elections in Punjab, threatening protests if the coalition government violates the apex court’s orders.
The political impasse exists at a time when Pakistan’s economy is in the doldrums, as its foreign exchange reserves decline to historic lows and its currency has suffered massive depreciation against the US dollar over the past year.
