ISLAMABAD: Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Interior and Legal Affairs Attaullah Tarar said that elections should be held in country as per schedule after fulfilling all legal formalities. Speaking here at press conference, he said that two provincial assemblies were dissolved prematurely to satisfy person’s ego. SAPM said that establishing caretaker government is constitutional requirement for conduct of general elections and there are different stakeholders including Ministries of Interior and Finance and others in this process which should be consulted for conduct of elections.

He said that Article 224 of Constitution is related to time of election and all constitutional formalities should be fulfilled for conduct of elections. “It is legal discussion and should be conducted at appropriate forum,” he maintained. Attaullah Tarar said that four judges recused themselves from hearing case related to elections in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab. He said that two judges separated themselves from nine-member larger bench and two others expressed their reservations over it and their valid points should be answered. He said that remaining five judges in bench would decide about maintainability and jurisdiction of case as two higher courts had been already hearing similar cases before suo motu.

He said economic condition does not allow country to hold elections separately and huge amount of money is required to conduct elections in two provinces. He said that budget was not earmarked in this fiscal year for conduct of elections and separate allocation would be made for it in upcoming fiscal year. He said that Imran Khan would be ultimately indicted in Toshakhana case as he sold out state gifts worth billion of rupees in nexus of his spouse, Farah Gogi and Ahsan Jamil Gujjar. “A gang of four minted money after selling state gifts and through posting and transfers,” he said.

Tarar said Imran Khan destroyed economy of country during his three-and-a-half-year tenure. He vowed that incumbent government came into power to save country from bankruptcy, expressing confidence derailed national economy would be back on right track soon. To question, he said PML-N left prosperous Pakistan in 2018, with reducing 18-hour long load-shedding and completing several projects.

Published in The Daily National Courier, February, 28 2023

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