Punjab govt to hold local body elections soon

Punjab Chief Minister Usman Buzdar has said that the Punjab government will hold local body elections soon.

Usman Buzdar has directed to complete the ongoing projects of the local government as soon as possible. The Punjab chief minister said that more than 6,000 drainage and sewerage schemes would be completed at a cost of Rs 17 billion.

He directed that local government schemes across Punjab should be completed in a transparent manner. Buzdar said that a strong system of local government would solve the problems of the people at the grassroots level.

The Punjab government has yet to start the delimitation process under the new local government system it had rolled out last year.

Meanwhile, the Supreme Court (SC) is expected to start hearing petitions filed against the early dissolution of the local bodies in Punjab from August 4.

In the application, the petitioners have sought permission from the court to allow them to work until February 2022, the stipulated period for their elected terms before the previous local government system was scrapped mid-term. They further maintain that elections under the new LG system should take place after their constitutional term ends. The local bodies’ elections, on a political basis, were organised for the first time in the history of the province in 2015.

The tenure for the local governments was to be completed on December 31, 2021. However, on May 4, 2019, the government dissolved the local bodies before the completion of their tenure.

Stay tuned to Baaghi TV for latest news and updates.