PM himself writes letter to Shehbaz for appointment of ECP members
ISLAMABAD (92 News) – Prime Minister Imran Khan on Tuesday himself wrote a letter to Opposition Leader in National Assembly Shehbaz Sharif for appointment of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) members.
It is pertinent to mention here that the appointment of two ECP members was pending due to recent political strife between the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and the opposition parties.
In a four-page letter, the prime minister invited the opposition leader to participate in consultations process for the appointment the ECP members. He also sought suggestions in writing.
In the letter, the premier rejected all objections and allegations hurled by Shehbaz Sharif that the federal government was violating the constitution by delaying the appointment of the ECP members from Balochistan and Sindh provinces.
“Written consultation is surely preferred. I again stress your good self to participate in the consultative process by giving your views in writing. In case you do not participate in the consultative process, the people of Pakistan and I shall have no other option but to presume that you are evading the legal process, in which further rights shall be reserved,” writes the PM, without further elaboration.
Earlier, Sharif wrote a letter to PM Khan for opposing his method of consultation over the appointment of ECP members through nominees and accused the government for violating the Constitution by impeding the filling of two vacancies.
Shehbaz rejects PM Imran Khan ECP nominations
Shehbaz Sharif rejected Prime Minister Imran Khan’s nominations of two people each for the two vacant seats of the ECP.
According to the details, Shehbaz’s Thursday response stated that the candidates nominated by the PM Office were different from those who had been nominated in a letter sent to him by Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi who had been nominated by the premier for the consultation process.
The office of opposition leader said a letter to him from Prime Minister Imran Khan, which suggested nominations each for the vacant posts for members of the ECP from Balochistan and Sindh, did not adhere to the intent and spirit of the Constitution. The response, written by the director to the opposition leader, Munib Ali Phulputo, and addressed to the premier’s secretary, Muhammad Azam Khan, added that an earlier letter written to Sharif on the matter from the Foreign Minister’s Office on Mar 11 was also in violation of the relevant articles of the Constitution. The response from the opposition leader’s office comes after PMO sent a letter to Sharif suggesting three nominations for the vacancies. The deadline set by the Constitution for the purpose was already missed earlier this month. It is worth mentioning here that the Prime Minister’s Office had sent a letter to the office of the opposition leader, recommending three people for the vacant posts from Balochistan and Sindh. The deadline for the nomination was already missed earlier in March. Shehbaz’s office replied that continuing vacancies because of delay in the process is in violation of Article 215(4) of the Constitution. The PM Office’s letter stated that the government had withdrawn its previous nominations and had nominated new posts for the suggested posts. PM suggested the names of Amanullah Baloch, former district and sessions judge, Quetta; Munir Kakar, a lawyer; and Mir Naveed Jan Baloch, a businessman and former caretaker minister in the provincial government, for their nomination as a member of the ECP from Balochistan. He had proposed the names of Khalid Mehmood Siddiqui, a lawyer; retired Justice Farrukh Zia Sheikh, a former judge of the Sindh High Court; and Iqbal Mehmood, retired inspector general of Sindh, for their nomination as a member of the ECP from Sindh.
