It was the right of the Election Commission of Pakistan to decide the date for general elections, according to the law, interim PM Anwaarul Haq Kakar has said.

“The law of the land says that the Election Commission of Pakistan has to decide [the date],” the interim PM said in an interview with Geo News which was aired on Sunday.

He was on Saleem Safi’s news programme ‘Jirga’. His response was to a query on the ambiguity of whether the authority to decide and announce the poll date rested with the president or ECP.

But the caretaker PM added that if the matter was taken to the superior judiciary where various constitutional experts give their interpretations of the law and the Constitution, the “legal consequence [of this process] will be binding on us”.

“But until such a judgement comes, we are compelled to operate as per the [existing] law.”

When asked whether the interim setup would abide by the superior judiciary’s decision if it concluded that elections were to be held within 90 days of the dissolution of assemblies, Kakar said: “No one should have any doubt about this.”

He explained that the way of life and political system would be compromised if the government was comprised with the reverence of the courts.

“Whatever the Supreme Court decides, whatever kind of interpretation it gives, on both circumstances, it will be acceptable to us. It is for the judges to judge,” he asserted when asked if the courts decide against polls being held after the 90-day period.

He called for a healthy discourse where political parties can present their concerns and doubts in a rational way related to the extension of the tenure of the caretaker setup.

Interim PM Kakar also assured that the caretaker setup term would not be extended unconstitutionally.

“We are an order of a constitutional continuation and will not stay [in government] even a moment beyond the period mandated under the Constitution and law.

“But this [time frame] will be decided by the law and it is linked to the announcement of polls’ schedule by the election commission,” he said.

On the query about the early closure of markets, the interim premier replied steps would be implemented to conserve energy soon.

“You will soon see an execution plan on this,” he said and added that the only factor barring the plan was that the Centre had yet to reach an agreement with provinces.