Letting go: Sindh agrees to devolve delimitation powers to election commission

KARACHI:

The Sindh government has decided to approach the federal government to bring an amendment in the Constitution and empower the Election Commission of Pakistan to carry out delimitation for the local bodies constituencies.

The decision has been made to comply with apex court orders, after a meeting presided over by Sindh Chief Minister Syed Qaim Ali Shah on Tuesday.



It was attended by works and services minister Mir Hazar Khan Bijrani, parliamentary affairs minister Dr Sikandar Mandhro, Sindh chief secretary Sajjad Saleem Hotiyana, law secretary Mir Muhammad Shaikh, principal secretary to CM Alamudin Bullo, local government secretary Javed Haneef, Sindh assistant advocate-general Ghulam Mustafa Mahesar and other officers.

Chief Minister Shah addressed the participants and told them how much the Pakistan Peoples Party respects the judiciary and has followed its orders. "The Sindh government is ready to make amendments in the Constitution," he said. "The amendments need to be made first by the federal government to whom the court has directed," he added. The provincial government will bring the amendment after that, he explained.

Shah directed the local government secretary to write the letter to the federal government to bring the amendment in the law. He also told him to write a letter to the Sindh advocate-general to guide the future course of action in light of the apex court orders.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 18^th, 2014.