Election Commission of Pakistan suspends Punjab govt’s Roshan Gharana Program till by-polls
ISLAMABAD, July 07 (SABAH): Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Thursday suspended the Punjab government’s Roshan Gharana Program till July 17, 2022. bye-elections on 20 seats of Punjab assembly are going to be held on 17th Junly.
During the hearing, Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Dr. Sikandar Sultan Raja stressed that these by-polls will be held in a transparent manner as the Commission has more support from law enforcement agencies (LEAs).
Counsel of Chief Minister Punjab Muhammad Hamza Hamza Shahbaz, Khalid Ishaq Advocate said that the program to subsidize households receiving electricity bills of up to 100 units was launched in the provincial budget for FY2022-23. “This package is for the entire province and not limited to 20 constituencies,” he said.
The chief minister’s counsel said that it could only be declared a violation of the code of conduct if a package is being announced for a particular constituency.
However, ECP Sindh Member, Nisar Ahmed Durrani, said that when the chief minister made such announcements during an election campaign, it would be considered an attempt to influence the outcome of the polls.
Khalid Ishaq responded that if the government wanted to influence election results, it would not have increased petrol prices.
At this, the ECP Sindh member pointed out that the provincial government did not have the authority to raise petrol prices.
Meanwhile, Chief Election Commissioner Dr. Sikandar Sultan Raja questioned the need to make a new announcement when the programme had already been included in the provincial budget.
“The programme has been announced for those consuming 50 to 100 units of electricity because of the rise in inflation,” Hamza’s counsel argued.
ECP Director General of Law, Mohammad Arshad, noted that it was the commission’s duty to ensure a level playing field for all parties. “The announcement of the Punjab government’s programme is an attempt to influence the by-elections.”
He called for the programme to be stopped since less than 10 days remained till the by-polls.
However, Khalid Ishaq argued that the consumers would benefit from the programme in August.
CEC Dr. Sikandar Sultan Raja backed the DG Law’s argument and said it was the Election Commission’s duty to provide a level playing field for all parties. Subsequently, the ECP suspended the programme till July 17.
The chief election commissioner said that action would be taken for violation of the electoral code of conduct in accordance with the law.
No development programmes should be announced till the by-elections, he directed.
“The Election Commission rejects all propaganda to make by-elections controversial. The Election Commission has more support from law enforcement agencies than ever before.”
The by-elections in 20 constituencies in Punjab would be held in a transparent manner, he vowed.
The government of Punjab recently announced free electricity for households using 100 units a month.
The chief minister said that the provincial government gave subsidy on floor, adding that, “We’re making efforts to overcome inflation.” He said medicines were being provided to the citizens free of cost.
Hamza Shahbaz conveyed that the Punjab government would pay the full bill of consumers using up to 100 units of electricity per month under the “Punjab Chief Minister Roshan Gharana Program.”
In view of the financial difficulties being faced by the destitute due to inflation, the “Punjab Chief Minister Roshan Gharana Program” is being launched; he described and declared that around 5.5 crore people of 44 lakh to 90 lakh families will be provided free electricity from July 01.