Islamabad, Apr 10 (PTI) A joint session of Pakistan’s Parliament on Monday passed a resolution demanding the holding of an election of the national and provincial assemblies on the same day “to save the country”.
The resolutions were moved after the Supreme Court last week ordered the election in Punjab province on May 14, leading to further political polarisation in the country.
The resolutions emphasised the significance of appointing neutral caretaker set-ups to ensure impartiality and fairness during the elections.
Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Murtaza Abbasi and Senator Kamran Murtaza moved two identical resolutions, calling for holding general elections of all the assemblies simultaneously across the country.
The resolutions also argued that holding separate elections in Punjab, the largest federating unit with over 50 per cent of the National Assembly seats, would inevitably impact the outcome of general elections to the National Assembly seats in Punjab.
It emphasised that any such move could potentially marginalise the smaller provinces’ role in the federation.
The lawmakers belonging to Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) staged a token walkout after the resolutions were moved.
They also chanted: “Hold elections and save the country”.
The issue of the election has taken centre stage in Pakistani politics as former prime minister Imran Khan has been pushing for timely elections in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provinces.
The Supreme Court last week ordered the government to provide Rs 21 billion to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) by April 10 to enable it to organise polls.
Elections are due to be held on May 14 in Punjab but the date for the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa elections has not been decided as yet.
The government had rejected the decision by the Supreme Court on provincial elections but in a Cabinet meeting on Sunday decided to seek approval from Parliament for funds.
Pakistan is in danger of defaulting on its debt, with an IMF bailout programme stalled since November, while a bruising political battle is raging between the government and former prime minister Khan.
The cash-strapped nation is in dire need of funds with its foreign exchange reserves hovering around USD 4.2 billion which provides barely one month of import cover. PTI SH AMS
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