The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has reassured that the Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) elections will commence as per schedule.
ECP confirmed that the AJK elections will be on July 27, on the same date as mentioned before.
In a statement issued on Sunday, an ECP spokesperson said the polling schedule announced on June 5 was in accordance with constitutional requirements and the constitutional tenure of the AJK Legislative Assembly.
The spokesperson rejected claims that the election timetable had been issued with political motives, describing reports of a possible postponement as baseless.
“The conduct of transparent, free and impartial elections within the constitutional timeframe is the commission’s responsibility,” the statement said.
The clarification came after Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said his party had requested the Election Commission to withdraw what he described as a “premature” election schedule.
Mr Bhutto Zardari said the PPP remained committed to pursuing a political solution to issues in the region and expressed support for the establishment of a Truth and Reconciliation Commission to address longstanding grievances.
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The political debate over the election schedule follows recent developments involving the Jammu Kashmir Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC), which the AJK government declared a proscribed organisation under the Anti-Terrorism Act on June 5, alleging that the group was involved in terrorist activities.
The ban was imposed days before the organisation had planned a protest against the abolition of 12 seats in the AJK Assembly reserved for refugees from Indian-administered Kashmir who migrated to Pakistan after 1947.
Meanwhile, Pakistan’s Minister for Parliamentary Affairs, Tariq Fazal Chaudhry, said the PPP had not consulted the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) regarding any proposal to postpone the elections.
Speaking to Geo News, Mr Chaudhry said the election schedule had been issued in accordance with constitutional requirements and stressed that polls must be held before August 4.
Commenting on the security situation, he said conditions in the Mirpur and Muzaffarabad divisions remained normal, with tensions largely limited to Rawalakot.
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