Fawad Chaudhry, senior vice president of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), criticized the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) for failing to hold a meeting regarding the general elections in Punjab despite judicial orders. In a tweet, he stated that the Commission, consisting of clerks, was “making a joke of the Constitution and court orders”.
الیکشن کمیشن کو انتخابات کیلئے آج اجلاس منعقد کرنا چاہئے تھا،آئین اور عدالتی احکامات کو مذاق نہ بنائیں،عدالت کے واضع احکامات کے بعد بھی عام تاثر ہے کہ چونکہ الیکشن کمیشن منشیوں پر مشتمل ہے اسلام آباد کی طرح صوبائ الیکشن بھی نہیں کرائے گا ۔آئین کے ساتھ یہ کھلواڑملک کو مہنگا پڑے گا
— Ch Fawad Hussain (@fawadchaudhry) February 12, 2023
It was Chaudhry’s warning that the Electoral body must hold the meeting and take the Constitution seriously, as “tampering with it will cost the country dearly.”. In addition, he stated that the Constitution is the only agreement that exists in the country, and if it is disregarded, the state of Pakistan will be at risk.
It was stated by the PTI leader that the movement for the preservation of the Constitution is ready and will commence with the “Jail Bharo” (fill up the jails) movement and continue until the Constitution is restored. Due to the delay in announcing the election schedule in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, PTI Chairman Imran Khan had previously announced the “Jail Bharo” movement on February 6.
Accordingly, the ECP has called a special meeting on Monday to discuss the Lahore High Court’s (LHC) decision to hold elections in Punjab within 90 days. A meeting will be held at the secretariat of the commission to discuss the future course of action and the implementation of the court’s judgment.
As a result of PTI’s plea on Friday, the LHC had instructed the ECP to ensure that elections in Punjab are held within 90 days. The PTI moved to the high court after repeatedly calling for the election commission to announce the election dates in Punjab, following the dissolution of the provincial assembly on January 14. The court ordered the ECP to announce the election date with reasons specified, after consulting with the governor of Punjab, within 90 days, as mandated by the Constitution.
