In a letter to the chief election commissioner on Friday, Achakzai said that waiting for the electoral college to be completed was in the interest of fair play and justice.

Achakzai said that the the Sunni Ittehad Council has already filed a petition in the court regarding reserved seats and an injunctive order has been issued. He added that the party is hopeul of getting a favourable verdict.

He also wrote that unless the electoral college is completed, the scheduling or holding of elections would be ‘illegal, unlawful and against the constitution’.

“Under the above circumstances, it is submitted that the proposed election to the office of the President of Pakistan is clearly impossible, therefore the same may kindly be postponed or delayed till completion of electoral college accordingly in the best interest of justice, fair play and equity.”

Achakzai’s letter comes a day before the election is set to be held across the five assemblies.

He is competing against the joint candidate of the ruling coalition, Asif Ali Zardari.