An emergency meeting of Pakistan’s federal cabinet has been called today to make a decision on whether funds should be released to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) for conducting the elections in Punjab or defy the orders of the Supreme Court, Dawn reported.
According to the Dawn, a PML-N insider said that Sharifs were in complete mood to defy the Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP)-led three-member bench’s decision to hold elections in the Punjab province on May 14 and there was no secret in it. Speaking to Dawn, the Pakistan Information Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb said that the meeting will be held in Lahore. She called the meeting “important” on current issues and added that it will be chaired by Pakistan PM Shehbaz Sharif.
Marriyum Aurangzeb said that the majority of the cabinet members will attend the meeting virtually. She said, “This is an important meeting on the current issues. However, its agenda has not been circulated as yet,” adding that “significant decisions” might be taken in the huddle, according to Dawn report.
The Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) has separated itself from the Pakistan PM’s demand that Chief Justice of Pakistan Umar Ata Bandial should resign. Citing sources, the report said that PPP might review its position at the last minute on whether to support the Pakistan Muslim League – Nawaz (PML-N)’s decision to reject the Supreme Court’s order regarding elections in Punjab.
The decision regarding the release of funds for the Punjab polls, Pakistan President Arif Alvi’s decision to return the Supreme Court Bill and Justice Athar Minallah’s judicial note in the case of the election will be discussed in the meeting, Dawn reported citing a PML-N insider.
“Be it Nawaz Sharif, Shehbaz Sharif and Maryam Nawaz…all in one voice have rejected the three-bench verdict and the parliament is also standing behind the PML-N’s stance,” the insider said, adding that the party was also unanimous on this point.
He said that in Sunday’s meeting, the premier and cabinet would declare that there were no funds for the May 14 elections, the report said.
“And let’s see what action the SC takes on Monday…we don’t care,” he said and added that PML-N was desperately looking for a narrative and this defiance would help it build one with which it can go into polls.
“Further legislation by parliament to clip the apex court’s powers may also be discussed in the meeting,” he said, the Dawn reported.
Federal Finance Minister Ishaq Dar earlier in the day also did not give any hint that the government would be releasing funds to the ECP for the Punjab polls.
Meanwhile, PML-N leader Maryam Nawaz has already declared that the party was ready for disqualification.
“The SC had disqualified Nawaz Sharif and if it decides to issue a contempt notice to PM Shehbaz we don’t care as we have rejected the three-member bench decision on Punjab polls which in fact was 4/3,” she had said.
On April 5, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) announced May 14 as the revised date for the Punjab Assembly polls, Dawn reported. The decision came after Pakistan Supreme Court’s (directives that the elections be held on May 14 instead of the previously notified date of October 8.
The revised schedule was issued in a notification which cited the Supreme Court’s order in response to a petition filed by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) against the ECP’s decision to postpone the elections in Punjab from the originally decided date of April 30 to October 8.