AGP asserts that the president cannot unilaterally fix the election date.

ISLAMABAD: On Wednesday, Barrister Shehzad Ata Elahi, the Attorney General for Pakistan (AGP), confirmed the President’s authority over the announcement of the election date and said that the President cannot unilaterally establish the election date.

According to sources with knowledge of the situation, the AGP informed the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) of his position regarding the by-elections in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa after the dissolution of the assemblies. He reportedly stated that the constitution does not grant the President the authority to announce the date of the election in provinces, only the governors.

While providing a constitutional opinion to the electoral watchdog regarding the elections in two provinces, the AGP office stated that President Alvi’s decision to hold elections in 90 days is unacceptable and that it would be impossible to hold elections before April 27 if the ECP released the schedule.

He said that the 8th Amendment, passed by General Zia in 1985, provided the President the authority to choose election dates, but the 18th Amendment granted the provinces that authority. The election date might be announced by the governor.

The AGP apologised for writing the ECP with an opinion and said, “I do not speak for the state or the government. I thus cannot express my viewpoint in words.