Pak Parliament Passes Resolution Rejecting Top Court Order for Polls in KPK And Punjab Provinces

Pakistan’s parliament on Thursday adopted a resolution rejecting a Supreme Court order to hold snap elections for the legislatures of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK) and Punjab provinces.

The top court had declared the election commission’s decision to delay the polls unconstitutional on Tuesday. Former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s party had dissolved the local governments in those provinces earlier this year.

The motion in the national assembly was tabled by legislator Khalid Magsi and passed.

The House speaker, in a live broadcast, said a majority of lawmakers had voted to reject the decision by the court’s three-judge bench headed by the chief justice and to demand a full court panel consisting of all judges hear the case.

The court’s order said that the elections in the two provinces should go ahead, despite the government’s reluctance. It gave a date of May 14 for voting in Punjab province, but the date for voting in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa was still pending.

The House expressed concern over “interference in political matters”, saying the judgements of the “minority” were creating anarchy in the country and paving the way for division in the federating units.

The resolution also voiced concerns over the “wrong interpretation” of the constitution.

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