Put Election Commission in place quickly: SC

Apex Court hears petition on reconstitution of the electoral body which hasn’t been formed despite repeated notices.

ISLAMABAD:

Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhary on Monday said that the formation of the Election Commission is mandatory for free and fair elections and directed the attorney general to constitute the commission as early as possible.

During the course of hearing a petition regarding the reconstitution of the commission, the chief justice said that those who have taken oath in accordance with the constitution must know the consequences of defying it and observed that the commission is yet to be reconstituted in accordance with the constitution, a year after the ratification of the 18th amendment.

“Those who take oath in accordance with the constitution are well aware of the consequences of defying the law. It is necessary for a democratic government to implement the constitution in letter and spirit. Those responsible for abrogating the constitution in the past faced serious problems. The formation of the Election Commission is mandatory for free and fair elections,” the chief justice said.

The petitioner’s counsel submitted that the delay in the formation of the Election Commission despite repeated notices is an infringement of human rights.

Attorney General Maulvi Anwarul Haq informed the three-member bench that a committee constituted for the implementation of recent amendments in the constitution is working on the Election Commission’s formation.

The chief justice remarked that no government functionary would be permitted to defy the constitution. “The electoral process should be halted if the formation of the election commission is not yet complete. Violation of the constitution by the government will set the wrong precedent,” he said.

If the court declares that the government is defying the constitution, it will have serious repercussions, Justice Chaudhary observed. “If the election commission has not been constituted according to the constitution, the staff cannot even draw their salary. We are not concerned with the government’s internal conflicts. We will follow the constitution to the letter,” he added.

“The constitutionality of by-elections held in the past one year may be called into question,” Justice Ghulam Rabbani said.

The court disposed the petition with directions to the attorney general to reconstitute the Election Commission as quickly as possible.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 26^th, 2011.