K-P governor advises ECP to consider security situation before polls

Ghulam Ali told the electoral watchdog to consult with LEAs, political parties before announcing election dates

PESHAWAR:

The Governor of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Haji Ghulam Ali on Wednesday advised the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) to take the province's security situation into consideration before announcing polls.

In a letter to Chief Election Commission (CEC) Sikander Sultan Raja, the governor said that the opinion of the law enforcement agencies should be taken before holding elections while security agencies, as well as political parties, should be taken into confidence.

Ghulam Ali urged the electoral watchdog to have a dialogue with the LEAs due to the alarming situation in the province after the recent incidents of terrorism.

He furthered that the date for the polls should be announced after consultation with the LEAs and political parties.

Read PTI moves PHC for holding K-P elections

On the other hand, a spokesperson for the ECP said that the K-P governor had not yet given the election date nor informed the Commission about the date of the general elections.

Earlier, the ECP sent letters to the provincial governors of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab with proposed dates for elections of the provincial assemblies.

According to Express News, the electoral watchdog proposed April 9 to 13 for the elections of the Punjab Assembly and April 15 to 17 for the K-P Assembly and asked the respective governors to select a date within the given timeline.

The letter stated that the governor should finalize the date between April 15 and 17 in K-P and inform the authorities.