The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has initiated a comprehensive verification process of all election forms uploaded on its official website, including critical forms such as Form 45 and Form 46. The verification process and the officials meant for the purpose were approved by Chief Election Commissioner Sikandar Sultan Raja, with an official notification issued on Thursday. According to the notification, the ECP has appointed teams of officers to verify election forms 45, 46, 47, 48, and 49 across the country. These officers will ensure the authenticity and accuracy of forms related to the general elections and subsequent by-elections. The notification further specified the roles of key officers leading the verification efforts. Muhammad Nasir Khan will head the team responsible for verifying the election forms from National Assembly constituencies, while Kashif Abbas will oversee the verification of forms from provincial assemblies. Waqas Malik will act as the supervisor, and Nadeem Haider will serve as the in-charge of the overall verification process. Teams will verify uploaded Forms 45 and 46 against polling station records, ensuring their accuracy. They will also identify any missing or unreadable forms, with instructions to complete the task within seven days.

Meanwhile, the Election Commission of Pakistan postponed on Wednesday the local body elections in Islamabad, which were slated to be held on September 29. According to details, the electoral watchdog said: "The local body elections have been postponed following the approval of the Islamabad Capital Territory Local Government (Amendment) Bill, 2024." Parliament has approved the amendment bill in line with the Islamabad local body elections. According to the bill, Islamabad's union councils will increase the number of the wards. Moreover, the commission also examined various political parties for failing to adhere to the constitutional requirement of allocating 5% of election tickets to women. A four-member bench led by ECP member Nisar Durrani conducted a hearing to address the issue on Wednesday. During the hearing, the ECP reviewed ticket allocation data from several parties. For instance, BNP Mengal's lawyer reported that the party had fielded 27 candidates for the provincial assembly, with only two being women, and 11 candidates for the National Assembly, none of whom were women.

Credit: Independent News Pakistan