LAHORE: Punjab Election Commissioner Sharifullah on Thursday said that notices have been served to Power Minister Sardar Awais Ahmad Khan Leghari and Special Assistant to the Prime Minister (SAPM) Huzaifa Rehman for allegedly violating the code of conduct of the Election Act, 2017.
A spokesperson for the Provincial Election Commissioner said the federal minister and the SAPM had been instructed to submit their explanations by November 21 (today).
“No minister or advisor is allowed to conduct an election campaign,” the spokesperson said, warning that swift action will be taken against any violation of the code to ensure free, fair and impartial elections.
By-elections in six National Assembly seats and seven Provincial Assembly seats in Punjab are scheduled for November 23.
According to the district control officer of Dera Ghazi Khan, Leghari participated in the electoral campaign of PML-N candidate Mahmood Leghari in the NA-185 constituency.
The monitoring officer said that by participating in the campaign as a federal minister, Leghari had contravened official instructions. The minister was asked to appear before the authorities and clarify his position regarding the alleged ECP violations.
The monitoring officer further said that SAPM Rehman had violated the electoral code of conduct. The official said that the SAPM intends to participate in the election campaign of the PML-N candidate.
Meanwhile, the Faisalabad district controller has written to the Election Commission, alleging that Minister of State for Interior Talal Chaudhry has repeatedly violated the electoral code of conduct.
The monitoring officer told the election watchdog that the state minister was warned by telephone about his conduct, but failed to comply with the ECP’s code of conduct despite two previous notices.
The state minister was fined Rs 50,000 for violating the ECP’s code of conduct, the officer said, adding that the matter was being referred to the election body for “further action”.
It is pertinent to mention here that the by-election campaigns for 13 national and provincial assembly constituencies in Punjab will officially end at midnight on November 21.
Arrangements are almost complete for holding by-elections in six National Assembly constituencies and seven provincial constituencies of Punjab on November 23.
The ECP warned that candidates who continue to engage in political activities after this deadline will face legal consequences.
The ECP warned that those who violate these regulations could face penalties such as imprisonment of up to two years, a fine of up to Rs 100,000, or both.
The National Assembly constituencies included NA-18 Haripur, NA-96 Faisalabad-Il, NA-104 Faisalabad-X, NA-129 Lahore-XIll, NA-143 Sahiwal-IlI, NA-185 DG Khan-ll, PP-73 Sargodha-llI, PP-87 Mianwali-lII, PP-98 Faisalabad-I, PP-115 Faisalabad-XVIll, PP-116 Faisalabad-XIX, PP-203 Sahiwal-VI and PP-269 Muzaffargarh-ll.
