ISLAMABAD: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government has assured “all possible support” to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) in holding the local government elections in 23 districts of the province where the electoral body has completed the delimitation of constituencies.
In a meeting held on Tuesday to select a date for holding the LG elections in KP, Chief Secretary Shahab Ali Shah informed the ECP that the summary regarding choosing a date for holding LG elections was sent to the provincial cabinet of Chief Minister Sohail Afridi for approval.
Once the summary is approved, the provincial government would proceed accordingly, he said, adding that the KP government would render all possible support to the ECP for the conduct of LG elections.
Chairing the meeting, Chief Election Commissioner Sikandar Sultan Raja directed the chief secretary to share a copy of the said summary with the ECP.
The meeting decided to meet again after 15 days to continue consultation on LG elections date.
Earlier, during the hearing of the KP LG polls case on the seventh of this month, the chief secretary KP had informed an ECP bench that the provincial government had already provided the maps and relevant documents of 23 districts of the province to the ECP in which the electoral body had completed the constituencies’ delimitation.
He had further informed the bench that the provincial government also provided the required maps and relevant data regarding the remaining 15 districts where the delimitation drive was pending.
The bench, comprising Nisar Ahmed Durrani, Shah Muhammad Jatoi, Babar Hassan Bharwana and former Justice Ikram Ullah Khan, had directed Shah to ensure that the required data was provided to the ECP before the next hearing of this case.
The bench then adjourned this case till this month’s 28th.
The Section 219(3) of the Elections Act, 2017 provides that the ECP shall, in consultation with the federal or provincial government concerned, make an announcement of the date or dates on which the elections to a local government shall be conducted in a province, cantonment or the Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT).
The electoral body is bound to hold LG elections within 120 days of the expiry of the relevant local bodies’ term, under Section 219(4) of the Elections Act, 2017.
This law provides that the ECP shall hold LG elections within 120 days of the expiry of the LGs’ term in a province, cantonment, or the ICT.
The LGs term in KP expired respectively in March and June this year.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2026
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