‘Delimitation of constituencies by govt is illegal’

The exercise carried out by the govt violates the orders of the apex court

KARACHI: Sindh government is conducting delimitation of the constituencies for the local bodies' elections in violation of the apex court’s order, said the petitioners before the Sindh High Court (SHC) on Tuesday. The verdict ordered that election commission should carry out this task, they added.

The division bench, headed by SHC Chief Justice Faisal Arab, heard more than 40 petitions that declared the provincial government's authority to redraw the constituencies as illegal. The petitions were filed by the Muttahida Qaumi Movement members and lawyers Zulfiqar Ali Domki and Syed Mureed Ali Shah.

Certain provisions in the Sindh Local Government Act 2013 have taken away the election commissions' power to conduct delimitation of the constituencies, argued the petitioner's lawyers. SHC had nullified a similar process of redrawing constituencies as initiated by the provincial government in December, 2013, recalled Domki. Later, the Sindh government approached the Supreme Court, that also upheld the SHC judgment, he added.

Domki argued that after dismissing its appeal, the SC had also ordered the government to pass legislation that empowers the election commission to carry out such exercises.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 16^th,  2015.