he Supreme Court has ordered the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) to ensure elections to the Punjab provincial assembly are held on May 14. However, none of the mainstream political parties in the Punjab, including the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI), the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), are prepared for the elections. This can be an indication of the uncertainty regarding the holding of elections on the announced date.

After it took suo motu notice of the matter, the Supreme Court of Pakistan had ordered the ECP to ensure that the elections were held on the date fixed by the Supreme Court. The ECP later submitted a report to the court informing it that the government had not released the Rs 21 billion needed for making the arrangements. The government has, since then, sent a proposal to the parliament. The National Assembly has rejected the demand. As a result, the tension between the parliament and the chief justice of Pakistan has heightened.

A tussle between the Supreme Court and the parliament can continue for several weeks. In practical terms, the question remains: will the ECP be able to hold the election on May 14?

A close look at the PTI’s activities suggests its chairman Imran Khan is focusing on strategies to avoid physical appearance in courts and to evade arrest. At the same time, he is keeping his narratives alive by addressing people through video links. When it comes to provincial elections, the preparations are sluggish. For the first time, the PTI has not invited applications for the party tickets from potential candidates. Instead, Imran Khan has formed provincial parliamentary boards comprising officer bearers from the provincial and district organisations. The boards have shortlisted two or three names from each constituency starting with PP-1, Attock. A PTI insider tells The News on Sunday that the candidates were shortlisted on the basis of their performance during Khan’s long march and protests. “The major factor the board considered was the number of people they brought to the protests.”

“Now the chairman is personally interviewing the shortlisted candidates in one-on-one meetings.” It is said that the candidates are being asked about the changes they would seek to bring to their constituencies; their thoughts on the Russia-Ukraine War and their opinion of the Saudi-Iran reconciliation etc. Khan himself has said several times that he fears that the elections will not be held according to the current schedule. Meanwhile, PTI workers have developed a narrative surrounding the elections in the Punjab.

According to PTI sources, Khan has so far interviewed the shortlisted candidates for 75 constituencies. That leaves more than 600 shortlisted candidates from the remaining 225 constituencies. The source adds, “this looks impossible at the current rate.”

“We are always ready to contest elections but we don’t approve of an election meant to accommodate a single person,” says Qamar Zaman Kaira.

The PML-N chief organiser, Maryam Nawaz, had started the re-organisation of her party and its women and youth wings on a war footing. The PML-N had also invited applications for party tickets and formed a board to review those. However, top PML-N leaders have now decided to resist the holding of elections on May 14. The PML-N is asserting that the Punjab Assembly was dissolved as a result of a misinterpretation of Article 63 A, and that in rendering this judgment the Supreme Court went beyond its mandate and effectively amended the constitution. They say that it is unconstitutional for the court to order elections on May 14. Maryam Nawaz has repeatedly said, “We will not contest the elections unless a level playing field is provided to all parties.”

The PPP appears to be on the same page as the PML-N. Qamar Zaman Kaira says, “We are always ready to contest elections but we don’t approve of an election meant to accommodate a single person.”

“If elections are held in the Punjab on May 14, this will not only impact the transparency of the general elections but also jeopardise the Federation. How can elections be held in the Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa before the National Assembly and the Sindh and Balochistan Assemblies. The PTI and the learned court must understand this.”

According to a PPP Punjab secretariat official, the PPP Punjab has received applications for party tickets from 240 of the 297 constituencies. Despite this, the PPP leaders are not sure about elections in May. PPP chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari and co-chairman Asif Zardari are laying plans to regain lost ground in the province. They have been focusing on southern Punjab, where some electables have joined the PPP recently. Former prime minister Yousuf Raza Gillani and former Punjab governor Makhdoom Ahmed Mahmood are using their connections to strengthen the party in the region.

Jamaat-i-Islami, too, is not in favour of elections in the two provincial assemblies before elections are held to the other provincial assemblies and the National Assembly. Siraj-ul Haq, the JI emir, has expressed his reservations in this regard in several interviews and speeches. He has said that his party wants that elections for the National Assembly and all four provincial assemblies are held on the same day. “Elections only in the Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa are not acceptable to us. If elections are held in two provinces, two provincial governments will be in a position to influence the conduct and outcome of late elections,” says Haq.

However, the JI is also engaged in a mass contact campaign. Siraj-ul Haq, Liaquat Baloch and other JI leaders are holding public rallies in various parts of the country.

It appears that all parties, including the PTI, are anticipating elections in October instead of May 14.

The writer is a senior journalist, teacher of journalism, writer and analyst. He tweets at @BukhariMubasher