Imran Khan's PTI to launch election campaign today
Pakistan’s former Prime Minister is all set to fight the upcoming election battle. Imran Khan’s PTI (Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf) party has announced that it will formally launch its election campaign today i.e. on Monday. However, there is a dilemma about the date of the elections in the politically crucial province.
PTI is ready!
Taking to Twitter, PTI Secretary General Asad Umar wrote, “ Tehreek-e-Insaf will officially launch its election campaign tomorrow. They (Pakistan Democratic Movement) may not be ready but we are ready.”
The Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) is a coalition of political parties headed by the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) currently ruling the entire nation.
Interestingly, PTI’s announcement of launching the election campaign comes despite uncertainty surrounding the elections in Punjab, the most populous province which also sends nearly 150 lawmakers to the National Assembly.
ECP still waiting for funds
Ahead of the parties’ agendas, the ECP (Election Commission of Pakistan) is still waiting for funds from the federal government to conduct the elections. The Defence Ministry has informed the ECP that the Pakistan Army will not be available for providing security.
Amidst the economic crisis facing the country, the Parliament and the judiciary have also locked horns over the holding of elections in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provinces as the cash-strapped government has refused to authorise the funds to meet the expenditures.
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SC directs the federal govt. to release funds
The Supreme Court has directed the federal government to release Rs 21 billion in funds for the ECP by April 10 and provide security for the elections.
However, the government has refused to release funds for the polls as the Parliament rejected the proposal.
The defence ministry had also filed a petition in the Supreme Court calling it to take back its order of holding polls on May 14. The case is being heard in the Supreme Court and during the proceedings Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Umar Ata Bandial remarked that the three-member bench will not take back its order for holding polls on May 14.
The former prime minister has been pushing for snap elections in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the provinces where his PTI ruled till recently.
The PTI dissolved the Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa assemblies on January 14 and 18, respectively, in a bid to force the ruling PDM coalition in Islamabad to hold early general elections in the country.s
PTI releases list of candidates
According to the media reports, The PTI finalised a list of 297 candidates recently after PTI Chairman Khan interviewed all party candidates in person to uphold merit in awarding party tickets.
But the allotment of tickets has not gone well within the party as many high-profile leaders were snubbed, the reports said.
Whilst, a source said that Khan was planning to include the party’s Vice Chairman Shah Mahmood Qureshi and Umar in the review committee to address objections.
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