ISLAMABAD: The Senate has approved a resolution calling for simultaneous general elections across Pakistan.
The resolution was tabled by Senator Tahir Bezinjo for holding the same-day elections for national and provincial assemblies. However, Senators belonging to PTI walked out of the House during the proceedings. Senator Mushtaq Ahmad did not leave his seat on Opposition benches and did not oppose the resolution.
Senate Chairman Sadiq Sanjrani ruled that the resolution was passed unanimously, as Mr Ahmed did not oppose it during the proceedings.
The development came after the Supreme Court ordered elections in Punjab on May 14, following a petition filed by the PTI. The government, however, is reluctant to go into snap elections in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, where assemblies were dissolved earlier this year by the PTI.
In the resolution, it said that according to the spirit of article 280, the general elections for all the assemblies must be held simultaneously on its stipulated time under neutral caretaker setups to bring true political and economic stability.
The resolution noted that holding separate elections in Punjab will inevitably influence the outcome of general elections to the National Assembly’s seats in Punjab which will trample upon the role of small provinces in the federation.
