ISLAMABAD: Three days after the respective sessions of both the House of the Parliament prorogued without taking up the legislation required to hold the local government elections in the federal capital under the new laws, the electoral body on Monday, announced to have procured “all the material” required for LG polls in Islamabad — as the poll body proceeds ahead with its plan to hold these elections on the existing laws.
A statement, to this effect, issued by the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) said that it is ready to hold the LG elections in Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT), and that relevant arrangements have been made to print the ballot papers for the said elections.
The statement said that Chief Election Commissioner Sikandar Sultan Raja was briefed by the ECP officers concerned regarding the ICT polls preparations arrangements. The briefing suggested that all the material, required for LG elections, has been procured.
The CEC has convened a meeting on 10th November in which the secretary Interior, the chief commissioner Islamabad, and the inspector general Islamabad Police would brief the Commission on security arrangements and related issues regarding the LG elections, the statement added.
Early on Friday, the respective sessions of the Senate and the National Assembly came to an end without taking up the Islamabad Capital Territory Local Government (Amendment) Bill, 2026.
On 21st July this year, the ECP started the delimitation of constituencies in order to hold ICT LG elections in accordance with the Islamabad Capital Territory Local Government (Amendment) Ordinance, 2026 promulgated by the federal government on 10th January this year.
The delimitation drive was completed on 14th October. The ordinance was extended for a period of 120 days with effect from 9 May, and finally expired on 6th September.
Thereafter, the government was required to have the Islamabad Capital Territory Local Government (Amendment) Bill 2026 passed by the two houses of Parliament, in order to give legal effect to the ordinance. The bill has been designed to introduce an LG system in Islamabad that would comprise three town corporations, each to be headed by a mayor and two deputy mayors.
In September, the National Assembly’s interior panel passed this bill, but it has not been presented in the NA session.
Last month, the five-member full ECP bench headed by CEC issued an order citing relevant laws to direct the ECP Secretariat to immediately issue the LG elections programme for the ICT in accordance with Islamabad Capital Territory Local Government Act, 2015.
Consequently, the ECP opened nominations for LG polls on 30 October, whereas polling would be held on 20th December. The development implied that the nearly three months long constituencies’ delimitation exercise in the federal capital ended up futile.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2026