ISLAMABAD: A resolution to postpone the nation’s elections was approved by the parliament’s upper house a few days prior, and on Friday the Senate received a similar resolution.
Senator Hidayat Ullah, an independent, proposed a motion calling for a postponement of the general elections scheduled for February 8 due to “security challenges.”
In light of the “security challenges,” the upper house was stated to “call upon the Election Commission of Pakistan and the Supreme Court” to consider hosting peaceful elections and to postpone the polls for three months.
Concerns about “rising incidents” of targeting the candidates running in the next elections were also voiced in the resolution.
It was learnt that PTI Senator Ali Zafar obtained signatures from other members on a requisition asking a discussion on the matter of general elections. Additionally, senators from Jamaat-e-Islami and the PPP have endorsed the action.
According to the requisition, Pakistan cannot afford political unpredictability; so, in accordance with Article 224(2) of the Constitution and to fortify the democratic process, the general elections ought to have taken place within ninety days.
Many were shocked and incredulous when, on January 5, the Senate overwhelmingly approved a motion to postpone the nation’s general elections scheduled for February 8.
The motion, proposed by independent senator Dilawar Khan, asked for a postponement of polling due to the inclement weather in highland areas and the worsening security situation. The majority of parliamentarians present in the legislature adopted the resolution.
Of the 100 senators in the Senate, just 14 were present when the resolution was passed. Senators Afnanullah Khan of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and Murtaza Solangi, the acting minister of information, had rejected the motion, while Senators Bahramand Khan Tangi of the PPP and Gurdeep Singh of the PTI had kept mute.
