ISLAMABAD: The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) today (Tuesday) stated that the March 3 Senate elections will be held “according to the Constitution and law as per past practice”, which is through a secret ballot.
According to the document, the electoral body said, “The Commission also decided that due to time constrain, the ensuing Senate election scheduled for March 3, 2021, will be conducted as provided in the Constitution and Law as per past practice.”
— Altaf Khan (@profaltafkhan) March 2, 2021
The ECP commission, presided by its head Sikandar Sultan Raja, deliberated on the Supreme Court’s opinion passed in the presidential reference and decided to implement it in letter and spirit.
“The commission is taking all possible steps and measures to fulfill its constitutional duty to check that corrupt practices in the Senate elections are guarded against. The Commission has so far not received a detailed opinion,” the document added.
The document further stated, “The Supreme Court, in the short order, mentioned that the Election Commission is required to utilise the technologies and to develop a mechanism for the fulfillment of its constitutional duty in terms of Article 218(3) of the Constitution.”
“The Commission decided to constitute a Committee in this regard comprising of Special Secretary as Convenor, Director General (IT), Member and Saeed Gul, JPEC, Punjab, Member,” the document maintained.
A day earlier, the apex court threw the ball in the ECP’s court, asking it to take all available measures — including the use of the latest technology — to guard against corrupt practices during the Senate elections.
