IHC orders to hold LG polls in Islamabad within 120 days

The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Thursday ordered the federal government to hold local government elections in the federal capital within 120 days, Such News reported.
The high court settled the intra-court appeals regarding Islamabad local bodies elections. Hearing of the case was conducted by a two-member bench headed by IHC Chief Justice Aamer Farooq.
The joint secretary of Ministry of Interior appeared before the court. The chief justice asked him if he could record the statement that the government wouldn’t increase the number of UCs. “If you don’t record the statement then we should ourselves give the order. We will write in the verdict that UCs will not be increased before the election,” he said.
The court inquired the additional attorney general if the government agreed with 125 union councils. “Once you hold election so that whoever has to come into power he comes,” it said.
Aamer Farooq asked how much it cost to hold elections. The Election Commission of Pakistan director general apprised that Rs15-20 crore would be required. The IHC CJ said the government would give this much money.
On February 21, the Islamabad High Court (IHC) had sought the Interior Ministry’s reply in appeals with regard to local government elections in the federal capital.
An IHC bench comprising Chief Justice Aamer Farooq and Justice Saman Raffat Imtiaz had heard the appeals of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) and the Federation against the decision of a single-member bench on conducting the local bodies polls.
At the outset of the hearing, Additional Attorney General Munawar Duggal had said the joint session of the parliament had approved the Islamabad Capital Territory LG (Amendment) Bill, which would be effective from February 25.
The chief justice had asked whether there was any guarantee that the number of union councils would not be increased again as according to the new law the federal hovernment had the authority to do so, and whether there was any problem to hold elections in 125 UCs. There was no solid reason for increasing the number of UCs, the judge had remarked.