By Muhammad Najeeb, IANS
Islamabad : The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) is likely to delay the planned Jan 8 polls by four to five weeks, a senior official said Tuesday ahead of a crucial meeting to decide the final date.
“We don’t think that it would be possible for the commission to hold elections on Jan 8. We have received very negative reports from many parts of the country,” the official told IANS before going into the meeting that would look into the reports sent by provinces and district officials of the ECP.
On Monday, the ECP had asked its district officials to send reports on the losses incurred as protestors set more than 40 ECP offices on fire following the assassination of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto on Dec 27.
The agitating protestors also burnt election material and destroyed records in many parts of the country, particularly in Bhutto’s home province of Sind.
The official said that in such a situation, the ECP needed time to prepare for the elections.
“We believe that we need at least 10 days but due to Muharram, we’ll have to delay the polls for four to five weeks,” he said.
He added that the official announcement would be made after the meeting that started 10 a.m. at the ECP headquarters here.