ISLAMABAD: The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has changed the schedule for local government elections in Islamabad and extended the deadline for filing nomination papers by two days.
According to the revised schedule, candidates can now file nomination papers from December 28 to December 30, excluding Sunday. Earlier, December 27 was the last date for filing nominations. The ECP issued the new schedule after Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) requested an extension.
The ECP said the dates for other election steps have also been adjusted. However, the polling date remains unchanged. Voting will be held on February 15, from 8am to 4pm.
Under the new plan, the list of nominated candidates will be published on December 31. Scrutiny of nomination papers will take place from January 1 to January 6, excluding Sunday. Appeals against the acceptance or rejection of nomination papers can be filed from January 7 to January 10.
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The appellate authority will decide these appeals between January 12 and January 15. The revised list of candidates will be issued on January 16, while candidates can withdraw their nomination on January 17. Election symbols will be allotted and the final list of candidates will be released on January 19.
Earlier, the ECP had announced that nomination papers would be filed between December 22 and December 27, with scrutiny starting on December 30. That schedule has now been replaced with the revised dates.
Meanwhile, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) announced that its candidates will contest the Islamabad local government elections under the platform of the Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC). The decision was taken due to PTI’s pending intra-party case before the ECP.
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In a statement, PTI Islamabad chapter president Aamir Masood Mughal said the release of Imran Khan would be the main focus of the party’s election campaign. He asked party workers to show their affiliation with the Sunni Ittehad Council on nomination forms so that all candidates can contest on one election symbol.
Mughal criticised the government, alleging that it amended the local government law to benefit itself. He also accused the PML-N of avoiding local government elections in the past.
He claimed PTI would win the local government elections and urged workers to start door-to-door campaigns to spread Imran Khan’s message among the public.
