President Dr. Arif Alvi has opted to delay the commencement of the National Assembly session until the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) completes the allocation of reserved seats to all political parties.
Despite receiving a summary from the Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs urging the initiation of the session, President Alvi has taken the stance that the lower house of parliament should remain incomplete until all parties, including the Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC), are assigned their reserved seats.
While the ECP has successfully allocated reserved seats to several political entities, the assignment of the reserved quota for the SIC, which includes independent candidates supported by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), is still pending. The ECP has clarified that the matter concerning reserved seats for the SIC is currently under consideration.
The summary sent by the Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs to the president, indicating the readiness to convene the inaugural session of the National Assembly, has not received the president’s signature or rejection as of yet. The decision stands in a verbal form.
As per Article 91 of the Constitution, if the president refrains from signing the summary for initiating the session, the responsibility falls on the speaker of the National Assembly to convene the session on the 21st day following the elections. Following this timeline, the speaker could potentially convene the session on February 29, marking 21 days after the general elections held on February 8. The delay stems from the president’s insistence on the completion of the reserved seat allocation process before the parliamentary session kicks off.