ISLAMABAD: While the Supreme Court referred to the Election Commission of Pakistan on Monday a Sindh government’s request for a 10-day extension in the schedule which had set Nov 27 for local government elections in the province, the commission pleaded that it would not be possible to hold the polls even if the date was extended.

“Even the extended date as requested by Sindh will not help in holding the elections in the province because procurement of paper and printing of ballot papers will not be possible even during the extended period,” the ECP said in a concise statement.

A three-judge bench headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry referred a review petition filed by the Sindh government on Saturday to the ECP and asked it to accommodate the request and, if convenient, extend the polling day to Dec 7 — the date set for polls in Punjab and Balochistan.

During the hearing, Sindh’s Advocate General Khalid Javed explained that all activities otherwise necessary for holding the elections had to be suspended because of some logistic problems coupled with two Muharram holidays on Nov 14 and 15. Moreover, he said, a delegation of the Shia community and other major stakeholders had met Sindh Chief Minister Qaim Ali Shah and expressed concern over holding the elections in haste and called for extending the poll schedule.

Despite their request, Mr Javed said, the Sindh government reiterated its commitment to holding the polls in compliance with the apex court’s order.

The court said in its order that polling dates were to be fixed by the ECP and observed that the provincial governments were bound under the constitution to hold elections for establishing the local government system and devolving political, administrative and financial responsibilities and authority to the elected representatives.

APPLICATION: Advocate Akram Sheikh, representing the ECP, drew the court’s attention to the commission’s concise statement seeking postponement of the LG elections. But the apex court excused itself from hearing the application because it was not before it at the moment.

In its application, the commission had requested the court to allow it to make necessary arrangements to meet the requirement for holding elections in Punjab and Sindh, and then fix a date or dates in consultation with the provincial governments.

“It is important that mandate should be discharged in a manner which inspires confidence, transparency and fair play,” it said, adding that Article 218(3) of the Constitution called upon the ECP to ensure that elections were conducted honestly, justly, fairly and in accordance with the law and guarding against corrupt practices.

The commission explained that representative institutions and other segments of public opinion had opposed the option of getting ballot papers printed by private presses. The Printing Corporation of Pakistan press was not in a position to print within the deadline a large quantity of ballot papers — 110 million in three days for Sindh and 300 million in two weeks for Punjab, it added.

The commission argued that the involvement of private printing presses would make the entire process controversial and erode credibility of the elections.

The application pointed out a number of changes needed to be made in different laws and said the constitution required every Muslim candidate to give a declaration in nomination papers about absolute finality of the Prophethood of Muhammad (PBUH), but this column had not been provided in the prescribed nomination form in the Punjab Local Government (Conduct of Elections) Rules 2013. Therefore, a change is required in the forms.

Similarly, the ECP said, the election schedule issued for Punjab envisaged the holding of polls on non-party basis, but the Lahore High Court had recently declared it void.

The commission said the printing of ballot papers would be undertaken after the issuance of the final list of candidates by returning officers on Nov 23, whereas the Printing Corporation of Pakistan press had yet to get exemption from PPRA rules to procure paper through direct contracting. Besides, it also expressed its inability to print more than 0.7 million ballot papers a day. “This means they roughly need about four months to print the required quantity of ballot papers after the procurement of paper,” the application said.

Similarly, it added, the Pakistan Council of Scientific and Industrial Research Laboratories (PCSIR) had been requested to provide 1.5 million magnetised inkpads for Punjab and one million for Sindh, but the existing capacity of its lab to produce and supply the inkpads was a maximum of 600,000 and indelible ink 400,000 vials per month. The PCSIR also said that it would need three to four months to supply 2.5 million magnetised inkpads to the two provinces.

“The continuation of the delimitation exercise is also affecting the appointment of returning officers and assistant returning officers and changes are being proposed on a daily basis not only in their number but also in their respective jurisdictions where they are supposed to conduct the elections,” the ECP said.