The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has issued a directive, setting April 2 as the deadline for the submission of requests for postal ballot papers ahead of the upcoming by-elections on 23 National Assembly and provincial assembly seats across the country.
Scheduled for April 21, the by-elections will see vacant seats filled in various legislative bodies. Eligible individuals, including government officials, armed forces personnel, their families, and incarcerated individuals, are entitled to avail themselves of the postal ballot facility.
Strict measures are in place to ensure the integrity of the electoral process, with the ECP emphasizing that once a ballot paper is issued to an individual, no further changes or requests will be entertained.
The upcoming by-elections will cover six National Assembly seats, twelve seats in the Punjab Assembly, two each in the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan assemblies, and one in the Sindh Assembly.
Nomination papers for candidates were accepted by the ECP from March 16 to 18, with scrutiny taking place on March 21. Appeals against nomination papers can be filed until March 25, with the election tribunal set to adjudicate on these appeals by March 28. Withdrawal of nomination papers can be made until March 29.
The final list of candidates will be unveiled on March 29, with electoral symbols allotted on March 30, gearing up for a smooth and transparent electoral process in the upcoming by-elections.u
