ECP urged to reschedule LG by-polls due to Muharram

PTI’s Asad Umar thinks that holding elections just before Ashura is not the best idea

ISLAMABAD: A sitting member of national assembly from Islamabad has urged the Election Commission (ECP) of Pakistan to postpone local body elections in the capital, scheduled for early next month, owing to security concerns in Muharram. Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader and MNA from NA-48 Asad Umar wrote a letter to the chief election commissioner on Thursday, noting that holding elections on October 5, just days after Ashura, was not the best idea. “As you know, the security situation in the month of Muharram remains on high alert,” Umar wrote. “The candidates will not be able to conduct their campaigns for LG by-elections,” he argued. “Therefore, it is strongly recommended that the schedule for holding the by-election may please be changed with ordinary conditions.” The ECP, however, did not immediately respond to the letter and it is unclear whether the apex poll body will concede to Umar’s demands.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 15^th, 2017.