IN THE SUPREME COURT OF PAKISTAN 
(APPELLATE JURISDICTION) 
 
 
PRESENT: 
MR. JUSTICE TASSADUQ HUSSAIN JILLANI, HCJ 
MR. JUSTICE KHILJI ARIF HUSSAIN 
MR. JUSTICE SH. AZMAT SAEED 
 
CIVIL APPEAL NO. 297 OF 2014  
(On appeal from the judgments dated 
3.2.2014 passed by the Lahore High Court, 
Lahore in WP No. 31986/2013 etc) 
 
Election Commission of Pakistan through its Secretary 
… Appellant  
VERSUS 
Province of Punjab through its Chief Secretary and others 
… Respondents 
 
For the Appellant: 
Mr. Muhammad Akram Sh, Sr. ASC 
assisted by Mr. Moazzam Habib, Advocate 
 
Mr. 
Faraz 
Raza, 
Advocate 
and 
Mr. 
Mehmood A. Sheikh, AOR 
 
Mr. Sher Afghan, D.G, ECP 
 
 
Mr. Abdur Rehman, Law Officer 
 
For the Respondents: 
Mr. Mustafa Ramday, Advocate General 
 
Barrister Waseem Qureshi, Addl. A.G. 
 
Mr. Muhammad Azhar Siddique, ASC 
Mr. Muhammad Saleem, Asstt. Director, 
Local Government Bhakkar 
 
Mr. Haq Nawaz, in person 
 
Mr. Muhammad Khan, Narowal, in person 
 
Mr. Muhammad Fakhar-uz-Zaman, in 
person 
 
Mr. Muhammad Sarwar, in person  
 
On Court Call: 
Mr. Salman Aslam Butt, Attorney General 
 
Mr. S.M. Attique Shah, Addl. Attorney 
General 
 
Dates of Hearing:  
17 to 21st February. 2014 & 3,4,12,13 &  
19th March, 2014 
 
ORDER 
 
 
 
TASSADUQ HUSSAIN JILLANI, CJ.- We have heard 
learned counsel for the appellant, for the respondents, learned 
Advocate General Punjab and learned Attorney General for 
Pakistan.  
CIVIL APPEAL NO. 297 OF 2014  
2
2. 
 
For reasons to be recorded later in the detailed 
judgment, we hold, declare and direct as under:- 
i) 
that the power to hold elections of the Local 
Government stand vested in the Election Commission 
of Pakistan in terms of Article 140A of the Constitution 
of 
Islamic 
Republic 
of 
Pakistan. 
The 
Election 
Commission of Pakistan has been mandated to 
“organize and conduct the election and to make such 
arrangements as are necessary to ensure that the 
election is conducted honestly, justly, fairly and in 
accordance with law, and that corrupt practices are 
guarded against” (Article 218(3) of the Constitution);  
 
ii) 
that Sections 8 to 10 of the Punjab Local Government 
Act, 2013 and the relevant Rules framed there-under 
are ultra vires of the Constitution in so far as they 
empower the Provincial Government to carry out the 
delimitation of the constituencies for the Local 
Government;  
 
iii) 
that since the delimitation of constituencies of the 
Local Government is part of the process of organizing 
and holding elections honestly, justly and fairly which 
is 
the 
Constitutional 
mandate 
of 
the 
Election 
Commission of Pakistan, the power to carry out such 
delimitation should vest with the Election Commission 
of Pakistan;  
 
iv) 
that since the holding of election of Local Government 
has been delayed for more than nine years, which is 
CIVIL APPEAL NO. 297 OF 2014  
3
violative of the Constitutional command, we are 
persuaded to direct the Governments, Federal and 
Provincial (of Punjab) to carry out appropriate 
amendments / legislation to empower the Election 
Commission of Pakistan to initiate and carry out the 
process of delimitation of constituencies for the Local 
Government 
Elections. 
This 
exercise 
should 
be 
completed within a period of five months from today 
and the Election Commission of Pakistan shall 
thereafter take requisite measures to carry out the 
process of delimitation of constituencies for the Local 
Government expeditiously so as to complete the same 
within 
a 
period 
of 
45 
days 
of 
the 
enactment/amendments in laws in terms of this order. 
The Election Commission of Pakistan shall further 
ensure that the announcement of election schedule 
and the process of holding it is complete by or before 
15th of November, 2014.  
 
3. 
 
The appeal stands disposed of in terms noted above.  
 
 
CHIEF JUSTICE 
 
JUDGE 
 
 
 
JUDGE 
Islamabad, the 
19th of March, 2014 
Approved For Reporting 
Khurram 
