The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa governor has refused to open the country’s top electoral authority letter, seeking a date for the general elections in the province.

“The sealed letter is written to the secretary. I am not authorised to open it,” Haji Ghulam Ali told Aaj News on Friday while confirming that the KP Governor House has received the letter.

But, the Election Commission of Pakistan released the letter on Twitter after sharing a letter sent to President Arif Alvi. The ECP had proposed a poll date between April 30 and May 7 to the president.

“The secretary is on leave, he would open the letter by himself on Monday,” he said, adding that a discussion with the ECP would only be held after opening the letter.

He added that an election would be held with the available resources, stressing that it was the commission’s job to ensure the arrangements. The ECP would give the proposed date.

Alvi’s decision

“I wished that the president of the state and I would give the same agreed date,” he said and shared that he had approached Alvi for the said desire.

Alvi announced his decision on Friday to conduct the general elections for Punjab Assembly on April 30, after considering the dates proposed by the ECP.

The move had come just two days after the SC’s ruling that elections to the Punjab and KP assemblies should be held within the stipulated period of 90 days.

In its order, the court has instructed the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) to recommend an election date to the president, who will announce the date in consultation with the ECP.

Ghulam was of the view that the commission’s letter and the decision of the president were two separate issues, but their “essence is the same”.

“It would have been better if three of us [governor of KP and Punjab and president] had made a unanimous decision and heard the measures of the ECP of our provinces. But, maybe the president himself considered it appropriate to give a date. There would be difficulties if decisions are taken in such a way.”

He went on to add that there was a “big difference” in the situation between Punjab and KP.

KP, Punjab elections

Elections for the dissolved Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab assemblies will be held in 90 days, the Supreme Court ruled in a nail-biting end to a swift hearing on March 1.

The apex court has annulled President Arif Alvi’s order on the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa election date which he wanted to be held on April 11.

In its order, the court has instructed the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) to recommend an election date to the president, who will announce the date in consultation with the ECP.

The court also said that the election should be held within 90 days to the maximum possible extent.

It said the election date should be announced in view of Sections 57 and 58 of the Election Act.

The court decided some of the critical questions as follows:

• Election must be held within 90 days for Punjab and KP assemblies.
• If the governor approves the dissolution of the assembly, he/she will also give the election date. Hence, the election date for KP will come from the governor.
• If the governor fails to set an election date, the president can.
• Governors are bound to play their constitutional role immediately.
• This case started when the PTI dissolved the KP and Punjab assemblies on Jan 18 and Jan 14, respectively. They are now ruled by caretaker governments. When the assemblies were dissolved, elections should have been called in 90 days but no one in authority was willing to set a date. A political tussle turned into a constitutional conundrum.

The PTI has been claiming that the interim caretaker set-up and the Election Commission of Pakistan were not setting dates for the new elections. At one point President Arif Alvi unilaterally announced his decision on February 20 that general elections for the assemblies would be held on April 9.

Later, the Supreme Court started proceedings to determine who has the constitutional responsibility and authority to announce a date for elections to a provincial assembly after it was dissolved in different ways. CJP Bandial set up a nine-judge SC bench to consider how and when was the constitutional responsibility of holding elections be discharged.