A 5-member bench of the Supreme Court, headed by Chief Justice Umar Atta Bandial, is hearing the notice on the delay in the elections in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The bench includes Justice Mansoor Ali Shah, Justice Muneeb Akhtar, Justice Jamal Khan and Justice Mohammad Ali Mazhar.
Chief Justice Omar Atta Bandial said in his remarks that holding elections in 90 days is the spirit of the Constitution. The Attorney General will be asked to assist on constitutional points. There is a difference between the President’s discretionary and advisory powers.
Justice Muneeb Akhtar of the Supreme Court said that the 90-day period starts with the dissolution of the Assembly. What is the need to waste time after the assembly is dissolved.
Justice Mansoor Ali Shah inquired whether the caretaker chief minister can advise the governor to give the election date. Can the Governor reject the advice of the Caretaker Government?
President of the Islamabad High Court Bar, Abed Zubiri, said that the election date and the supervisory setup are announced simultaneously. The authority to give the date of the election lies with the Governor and not with the caretaker Chief Minister.
Abid Zuberi said in arguments that the Supreme Court has declared in the past that elections should be held in 90 days.
The Attorney General objected and said that the name of the President of the Supreme Court Bar was removed from the court order. The Supreme Court knows the Bar Association as an institution. Abid Zuberi replied that I am a lawyer of the Islamabad High Court Bar and not of any political party.
Chief Justice Umar Atta Bandial said that what is written in the court is not a court order, when the judges sign it, it becomes an order.
Abid Zuberi said that the announcement of the date of election and the monitoring setup is done simultaneously. The authority to give the date of the election lies with the Governor and not with the caretaker Chief Minister. It has not been announced for so many days.
The Chief Justice inquired whether you are saying that the government is not fulfilling its constitutional responsibility. Conducting elections in 90 days is the spirit of the constitution. Attorney General will be asked to assist on constitutional points.
Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar said that whenever the governor gives a date, a margin of 52 days will be kept.
Abid Zuberi told the court that the President of the State has written letters for consultation, upon which Justice Mansoor Ali Shah inquired under which law the President of the State is writing letters. There is no mention of consultation in the constitution. The caretaker government can also ask for a date.
Justice Jamal said in his remarks that the powers of the President are not directly stated in the Constitution. There are no powers in the constitution, then action will be taken under the law. If the accepted law allows the President, then the President is bound by the advice.
The Chief Justice said that after listening to the other side, they will decide whether the President needs consultation or not.
Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar inquired that if the governor is not giving the date, the president is also bound by the advice, so how will the election be held? If the Prime Minister does not give advice, the President cannot exercise the power under the Election Act. Parliament has delegated the power to the President in the Election Act.
Abid Zuberi said that there is no need for advice to use the delegated powers. In any case, the election has to be held within 90 days.The Attorney General said that the President can give the date of the election only when the National Assembly is dissolved. Otherwise, the President can give the date only if there are elections across the country. If the Governor asks for elections the day after the dissolution of the Assembly, the Election Commission will not agree. Elections should not be held beyond 90 days.