Overview
- In a reserved decision on November 17, the Election Commission of Pakistan directed its office to prepare a detailed schedule for Islamabad’s long-delayed local elections.
- The commission held that the 2024 change to Section 15 of the ICT Local Government Act conflicts with the Constitution and the Elections Act.
- Union council secretaries and the Local Government Department cannot conduct the polls, and reserved-seat voting must be run by officials nominated by the ECP.
- The ECP will appoint district returning officers, returning officers and assistant returning officers from the judiciary, administrative services or other public institutions.
- The term of Islamabad’s local government expired on February 14, 2021, with the commission noting the constitutional requirement to hold such elections within 120 days.