68 objections against new delimitation disposed of

RAWALPINDI:

Regional Election Commissioner Rawalpindi Nazar Abbas has completed the hearing of 68 objections filed against the delimitation of 100 new neighbourhood and village councils (union councils) in the federal capital.

A total of 158 objections have been filed so far and the hearing of all these objections will be completed this week and decisions on these objections will be announced from February 7 to February 14.

The appellate authority heard 46 objections on Sunday.

These objections were filed by prospective candidates of political parties in sectors F-6 and F-7, Noorpur Shah, Syedpur, Phalgaran, Mehra Bagwal, Chattar and adjoining UCs of Islamabad.

The list of new constituencies in Islamabad will be released on February 16 with final decisions on the objections filed.

There were 50 union councils in Islamabad but now they have been increased to 100 with new delimitations. All former chairpersons of Islamabad, political parties and prospective candidates have justified the increase in the number of union councils.

Most of the objections that have been filed in each union council were against the inclusion of one or two villages or area blocks in another UC.

Meanwhile, District Zoning Committee Rawalpindi headed by District Election Commissioner Rawalpindi Shaheen Ghazal has also completed 70 per cent of work on new zoning of seven municipal committees of the Metropolitan Municipal Corporation and District Council.

Election commission sources said that the number of neighbourhood councils in the new constituencies of the Metropolitan Municipal Corporation Rawalpindi has been increased from 46 to 100.

A new neighbourhood council (union council) with a population of 20,000 to 22,000 has been formed. The new neighbourhood councils and village councils of the Rawalpindi district will be formally announced on February 10.

The preliminary list will be released on February 10 after the completion of new constituencies across Punjab including Rawalpindi and objections will be sought on them from February 11 to February 25.

The final list of new constituencies of Punjab will be released by March 22. The Murree tehsil of the Rawalpindi district has also been given the status of a municipal corporation for the promotion of tourism in this local body election.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 31^st, 2022.