After the end of the constitutional period, what will be the future of caretaker governments in Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa?

 

After the end of the constitutional period, what will be the future of caretaker governments in Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa?

After the dissolution of the Assemblies of Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the tenure of caretaker governments in both provinces has also expired, but the Constitution of Pakistan does not mention that if a caretaker government fails to hold elections within the stipulated period. So what will be the legal justification for extending the term of such a caretaker government and what will be the constitutionality of the steps taken by the caretaker government during this time?

Chief Justice of Pakistan Umar Atta Bandial had also remarked during the hearing of the case of simultaneous elections in the Supreme Court in the Supreme Court on Friday that a constitutional question arises if the caretaker government continues for more than ninety days.

On the other hand, Tehreek-e-Insaf has termed the decisions of the caretaker governments as 'unconstitutional' after the expiry of their term, and on Thursday, Fawad Chaudhry said that the caretaker governments should go home.

However, there are instances in the history of Pakistan when caretaker governments could not make it possible to hold elections within 90 days and elections were held across the country a few days before the constitutional deadline.

During the tenure of former military president General Zia-ul-Haq and due to the death of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto in the year 2008, there was a delay in the holding of general elections in the country by a few days, but the elections were held during the caretaker government that was at that time. were present

It is stated in the constitution of Pakistan that general elections shall be held within ninety days from the date of dissolution of the assemblies, while the caretaker government shall be established within seven days of the dissolution of the assemblies.

But the current situation looks somewhat different from the past.

Despite all the efforts of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, the PDM government does not seem ready to hold elections in the country in a phased manner.

In such a situation, apart from the political parties, a new challenge has emerged for the Supreme Court.

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf has filed an application in the Supreme Court regarding the legality of these governments after the Chief Justice's remarks on the issue of the caretaker governments' tenure came out in the Supreme Court.

The petition filed by former Punjab Chief Minister Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi and former Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Mehmood Khan has taken a position that the caretaker chief ministers should be removed from their posts after the completion of the constitutional term of the caretaker governments.

In this petition, it has also been argued that the two caretaker chief ministers should be immediately restrained from exercising their powers. In this petition, it has been requested from the Supreme Court that the Supreme Court should clarify the procedure for running the day-to-day affairs of these two provinces under its supervision.

Ahmed Bilal Mehboob, the head of Pakistan's Election Monitoring Organization (PLDAT) says that the Constitution does not mention that if the caretaker government cannot hold elections within the stipulated time, then will the caretaker government continue to exist. Or Parliament can extend their term only by passing a resolution.

Speaking to BBC, he said that there is no precedent in the Supreme Court in which the Supreme Court has issued any direction (order) on this type of matter during the hearing of a case in the past.

He said that the role of the Supreme Court cannot be ignored in the current political situation of the country, on the other hand, the current government is also seen in a state of constant tension in the institutions. Promoting growth.

He said that the present government is not ready to implement the orders of the Supreme Court while some judges of the Supreme Court are not ready to give constitutionality to the proceedings in the Parliament, so important matters like the work of the caretaker government after its term. Continuity seems to be in doubt.

The head of PLDAT said that in the past, if the elections were delayed by a few days, then there was a caretaker setup in the entire country, so no one raised this point and no question was asked about the caretaker setup. The current situation is different from the past.

He said that it cannot be ruled out that the Supreme Court will give a direction during the hearings to be held next week regarding the caretaker setup in these two provinces.

Former judge of Lahore High Court and legal expert Shah Khawar says that Election Commission has the authority to make arrangements from the formation of caretaker governments to holding elections.

He said that it is not written anywhere in the constitution that the Supreme Court should direct the caretaker governments to run the affairs of the government. Speaking to BBC, he said that if the parliament allows the caretaker governments in these two provinces to hold elections. If a resolution is passed regarding the continuation of their work, then these caretaker governments may get some legal justification, but it remains to be seen how the Supreme Court views this legal cover.

He said that if the caretaker government conducts elections in its province within the stipulated time and takes any financial decisions even after the completion of its constitutional term, then the implementation of these decisions can be effective for one month.

Shah Khawar said that after the death of former military president Zia-ul-Haq, a similar case regarding the interim setup came to the Supreme Court and the Supreme Court declared the financial decisions of the interim setup legal.

He said that these are matters of this nature on which there is no specific explanation in the constitution as a precedent for any judicial decision, the current situation demands that the Chief Justice convenes the full court and resolves all matters.

He said that if this does not happen, there will be a further increase in the constitutional and political crisis in the country in the coming days, in which not only the democracy but also the judiciary will not have a good name.