President weighs November for election date.

 President weighs November for election date.

In Islamabad, President Arif Alvi appears poised to challenge the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) and the Ministry of Law by contemplating the announcement of the next general election's date, sources with insight into the matter have informed The Express Tribune.

According to these sources, the President has completed consultations with his legal advisors and may make the announcement in the near future. It is expected that President Alvi will send another letter to the ECP, suggesting November as the election date.

His legal team has advised him that an act of parliament cannot supersede the Constitution, and while parliament may have amended the Election Act of 2017, the Constitution mandates that elections must occur within 90 days.

Based on this legal opinion, the President is expected to communicate the election date to the Election Commission soon.

However, the President's House has not confirmed this development.

This situation began when, on August 23, the President invited the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) for consultations regarding the election date. The ECP responded by asserting that, after the recent amendments in the Election Act of 2017, the President no longer had a role in setting the election date, and thus the CEC declined the invitation.

According to the amendments in the Election Act of 2017, the ECP is not required to consult the President if the assembly is dissolved upon the advice of the prime minister. The President's House also sought the opinion of the Ministry of Law, which reportedly supported the ECP's view. However, the President remained unconvinced and now seems determined to announce a November election date.

According to the Constitution, elections should take place within 90 days following the dissolution of assemblies. However, the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM)-led government, during its final days in office, released new census results. The ECP stated that it was legally obliged to redraw constituencies based on these new census results. This process will take approximately four months, and the election schedule will be announced afterward, making it unlikely that elections will occur this year. However, if the President proceeds with his proposed election date, it could further complicate the situation.

The Supreme Court is also scheduled to address this issue next week, with the chief justice indicating that the court will not accept any actions that may violate the Constitution. The fate of the elections hangs in the balance, as observers speculate that polls may be postponed until February.