LAHORE: The Punjab government informed the Lahore High Court (LHC) that upcoming local government elections in the province will be conducted on a party-based system, allowing political parties to issue tickets to their candidates.
Furthermore, the submission was made during the hearing of multiple petitions challenging the Punjab Local Government Act, 2025. The proceedings were conducted before Justice Sultan Tanveer Ahmed, where the Punjab Assistant Advocate General appeared on behalf of the provincial government.
In this regard, the assistant advocate general told the court that the local government department had already submitted its report, clarifying the government’s position on the conduct of local government polls. He assured the court that the elections would be held on a party basis, addressing concerns raised by petitioners regarding the nature of the electoral system.
In this sense, the case arises from the Election Commission of Pakistan’s (ECP) decision in October to hold local government elections in Punjab under the legal framework of the Punjab Local Government Act, 2025. The petitions before the court question various aspects of the law, including provisions related to the electoral process.
Meanwhile, Sheikh Imtiaz, requested the court to formally record the assurance given by the Punjab government regarding party-based elections. He argued that clarity on this issue was necessary to ensure transparency and adherence to democratic norms.
So far, Director General Law Khurram Shahzad informed the court that the ECP had repeatedly engaged with the Punjab government on the issue of local government elections. He stated that the commission had sent nearly 80 reminders to the provincial authorities over the past four years, urging them to take the necessary steps to hold the long-delayed polls.
However, Khurram Shahzad further told the court that the Election Commission is constitutionally bound to conduct elections strictly in accordance with the law enacted by the provincial assembly.
He added that the Punjab government had set January 10 as the deadline for completing all election-related arrangements, and the ECP would proceed accordingly.
After hearing arguments from all sides, the court adjourned the proceedings until Tuesday, allowing time for further consideration of the submissions.
It is worth noting that the petitioner has consistently maintained that amendments made to the Punjab Local Government Act, 2017 resulted in non-party-based local government elections. He argued that such a system undermines democratic representation and contradicts established political practices. The court is expected to continue hearing the matter in its next session.
