President Dr Arif Alvi on Wednesday asked the Election Commission of Pakistan to decide on a date for the upcoming elections, stressing that under the Constitution, elections must be held within 90 days of dissolving the assemblies.
Alvi wrote to Chief Election Commissioner Sikandar Sultan Raja on Wednesday, pointing out that since the assemblies were dissolved on August 9, 2023, Article 48 (5) of the Constitution says that the President is "obliged to appoint a date not later than ninety days from the date of dissolution for the holding of the General Election of Assembly."
The letter then cites clause five of the referred article:
Where the President dissolves the National Assembly, notwithstanding anything contained in clause (1), he shall:
(a) appoint a date, not later than ninety days from the date of the dissolution, for the holding of a general election to the Assembly; and
(b) appoint a caretaker cabinet in accordance with the provisions of Article 224 or, as the case may be, Article 224-A
Alvi invited Raja for a meeting on Wednesday or Thursday.