The most significant of these is the timely holding of elections, notwithstanding the prime minister’s claim that general elections will be scheduled in accordance with the results of the recently completed digital census. Ministers have previously stated that the head count from 2017 would be used to conduct the elections. But on Tuesday, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif threw a curve ball when he definitely stated that elections would be held “on the basis of the new census” in an interview with a local TV station. If this is to happen, a new head count must be conducted, a constitutional modification must be approved, and the ECP must conduct new delimitation. Can all of this be completed within the time constraint given that the information minister has stated that the National Assembly will be dissolved early? After all, the current legislature’s term ends in just a few days, and the House doesn’t have enough members to enact an amendment authorizing new delimitation. Do the leaders want to use more constitutional “wizardry,” such as that which was used in the Punjab and KP caretaker setups? Will the center’s carers stay there for an extended period of time beyond the required 90 days? If the nation’s outgoing leaders insist on holding elections using the results from 2023, a new legal and constitutional dilemma will arise.
The MQM, PPP, and other parties have concerns about the most recent census findings, so the government must take that into account. It is unlikely that there will be agreement on the subject when the Council of Common Interests meets to discuss the head count. This opens the chance for political sleight of hand, especially if the custodians convene a CCI meeting to endorse the 2023 census. Elections must never be delayed past the time period that the caretakers are allowed by the constitution to hold them, even though it would have been ideal to have them in accordance with the most recent census. The census controversy cannot be a pretext for more constitutional violations or an indefinite postponement of elections. The PML-N must clear up the misunderstanding.
