ISLAMABAD, Mar 30 (EW): The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Wednesday night announced that the elections in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province would be held on October 30, the same date as Punjab’s elections.
In a notification, the ECP said: “…the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) notifies October 8, 2023, as the election date for the General polls to the provincial assembly of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.”
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa elections will be held in October
Earlier, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Governor had proposed May 28 as the date for the elections, but later, citing security problems, the Governor asked the ECP to hold the polls on October 8. It may be recalled that Pakistan’s President Arif Alvi had given April 30 as the date of the polls following the orders from the Supreme Court. However, on March 22, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) postponed the upcoming polls in Punjab citing security concerns.
In November 2022, the PTI chairman and former Prime Minister Imran Khan announced the dissolution of the Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa assemblies. However, the houses were dissolved on January 14 in Punjab and on January 18 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Then came the step of announcing election dates and provincial governors of Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa were reluctant to issue dates until the Supreme Court’s order on March 1. The Court directed President Alvi to announce a date for Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
