LHC orders polls on party basis in Punjab

The bench held that the Punjab government has the power to carry out delimitation and is competent.

LAHORE:

With only a month before the local government elections in the province, the Punjab government will now have to revisit its recently passed Punjab Local Government Act 2013. On Thursday, the Lahore High Court ordered the Punjab government to hold local bodies’ election on a political party basis, declaring Section 18 of the Act ‘void and ultra vires to the constitution’.

Section 18 reads: “…election of members of all local governments shall be held on non-party basis, through secret ballot on the basis of adult franchise in such manner as may be prescribed.”

While the division bench upheld the petitions filed against provisions of the Punjab Local Bodies Act 2013, it dismissed those challenging the power of the Punjab government to carry out delimitation before the elections.

The bench, headed by Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial, held that the Punjab government has the power to carry out delimitation and is competent, therefore, “the challenge in this regard is rejected.”

In its petition, the Pakistan Peoples Party had submitted that they intended to contest the forthcoming elections for local bodies as a party and explained how provisions of the Punjab Local Government Act 2013, namely, sections 1(3), 13- 18, 92(3), 95 (2), 105(4), 110-114, 122, 123, 125 and 126, go against the Articles 9, 10A, 17, 19A, 25, 32 and 140A of the Constitution of Pakistan.  The PPP had prayed the court declare the Punjab Local Government Act 2013 ultra vires to the Constitution.

The PTI submitted that the government, by passing the new Punjab local government law, has kept the powers of holding elections on non-party basis in its own hands. The party’s counsel said the authority of delimitation rests with the election commission only and the Punjab government carry it out is illegal.

The PTI and other respondents had submitted that the Punjab Assembly passed the law on August 21 by turning down a series of amendments, which included one pertaining to party-based elections.

They stated that the national and provincial assemblies in the country had been established as a result of party based general elections; therefore, conducting a non-party local government election in the province will be against the basic spirit of the constitution.

Certain clauses of the new law were contrary to Constitution and such elections would lead to corruption and nepotism in society, they contended.


Published in The Express Tribune, November 8^th, 2013.