If it takes place on schedule, the election of 2023 promises to be an emotional roller coaster. Additionally, the PTI and its leader are not even involved this time. Which census will be used to conduct the election—the one from 2017 or the one from 2023? Leaders of the MQM-P have pushed for the next general elections to be held in accordance with the updated census results and the ensuing delimitation process. This comes days after the PDM government’s ally’s party fiercely opposed to the decision to hold elections using the results of the 2017 census, claiming that Karachi’s population has increased to approximately 30 million people from the 14.9 million it had according to the 2017 census. MQM-P leaders also possess powerful
Not just the MQM is opposed to using the 2017 census; other parties are as well. Fair enough, the 2023 census shows that Balochistan’s population has grown, which should result in more seats for the province in the legislature as Punjab would lose them due to its sluggish population growth.
There is no question that the MQM and others have a right to demand that elections be held in accordance with the new census, but it might already be too late. The ECP will need at least a few months to perform constituency delimitations in accordance with the new census, and even then, it will only be possible after notification of the new census, which has not yet occurred. All of this will only cause the general elections to be postponed. The only options remaining are to conduct polls as scheduled for the 2017 census or to postpone them until the formalities for the 2023 census are completed. It’s crucial to keep in mind that the government This same government asserted that elections for the provinces of Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa could not be held on a different census than the general elections at the time, citing the upcoming 2023 census as rationale. But why delay the elections for the Punjab and KP assemblies if the census was not a problem?
In Pakistan, the census exercise has never been a piece of cake, and one or both parties have always voiced objections—many of them with good cause. Elections will take place in October or November because the administration may be dissolved on August 8 or end its term in the second week of August. This This is not enough time for the ECP to notify additional seats in light of a new census. Despite how undesirable it may be, the 2017 census solution might be the only option. The government is once again paying attention to election changes, a matter on which the opposition and the government parties should have collaborated months ago. The Election Act of 2017’s suggested revisions have been finalised by the Parliamentary Committee on Electoral Reforms. While the bill is still being reviewed, some of the more significant changes that will reportedly be made include a requirement that constituencies be based on an equal number of registered voters, the ability for poll workers to use cameras on their phones, CCTV cameras at every polling place, and criminal prosecution of presiding and returning officers for negligence. One wonders why such a delay in electoral reforms was permitted, given that the PDM government had more than a year to complete these matters, with only a few weeks left until a caretaker setup takes effect. There was undoubtedly political and economic unrest in the nation, but that cannot be used as a blanket justification for everything. It is becoming more and more obvious that the upcoming election process will also change the dynamics of the coalition. Is the PDM government more likely to be remembered for its indecision on crucial issues like the economy and elections than for anything else?
