The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has filed a petition with the Supreme Court of Pakistan, requesting that the court review its directive to hold the Punjab Assembly elections on May 14. In the 14-page petition, the ECP argues that the judiciary has no authority to set election dates and should not intervene in the ECP’s affairs.
According to the petition, the ECP believes that the Supreme Court should review its decision, as the judiciary “doesn’t have the authority to give the date of elections.” The petition came after the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) announced it would submit a detailed report of discussions between party leaders and the governing alliance, urging the apex court to enforce its verdict in the Punjab polls case.
The ECP’s petition highlights that the superior courts of Pakistan have been granted special powers under Articles 199 and 184(3) of the Constitution to review the actions and decisions of public bodies judicially. However, it emphasizes that while the superior courts can define the limits within which public bodies can exercise their power, they cannot assume the role of the public body themselves.
The ECP maintains that appointing the date for the election is “not the mandate of superior courts under the Constitution.” Citing several legalities and reasons to support its statement, the ECP accuses the Supreme Court of disregarding its constitutional jurisdiction and assuming the role of a public body in setting the election date. The ECP claims this intervention effectively alters the settled constitutional jurisprudence of the country.
The executive and judiciary, two critical state organs, appear on a collision course, as the Pakistan Democratic Movement-led government expressed dissatisfaction with the Supreme Court’s April 4 ruling. The ruling declared the ECP’s decision to postpone the Punjab Assembly elections until October 8 unconstitutional and ordered the elections to be held on May 14. The PTI welcomed the decision, while the government criticized it as contrary to the majority judges’ judgments and called it an “impractical order.”
The debate over who has the authority to determine election dates has been a significant issue since the PTI dissolved the Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa assemblies in January at Imran Khan’s instruction. The ECP’s petition claims that the Supreme Court overlooked material questions of the Constitution and law, which have a significant bearing on the decision. The ECP argues that the errors of law are evident on the record and should not be allowed to remain.
The ECP’s petition concludes by requesting the court’s indulgence to allow the petitioner to raise and address other grounds once the detailed reasoning for the order under review is released.
 has filed a petition with the Supreme Court, requesting a review of the directive to hold Punjab Assembly elections on May 14, arguing that the judiciary lacks the authority to set election dates.){kind=link}