Names of elected MNAs, MPAs to be notified on March 2: ECP

The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) will issue notification of the elected members of the National Assembly and the four provincial assemblies on March 2, 2008, ECP Secretary Kanwar Mohammad Dilshad told Business Recorder here on Saturday.
He said the independent elected MNAs and MPAs may join any political party within three days of the publication of the official Gazette of the names of the returned candidates. Dilshad said the Commission has asked the elected candidates to file their election expenditure statements by February 28. The defeated candidates can file their expenditure statements till March 18, 2007.
He said that members to the seats reserved for women, which are allocated to a province, shall be declared elected in accordance with law through proportional representation system of the political parties’ lists of candidates on the basis of total number of general seats secured by each political party from the provinces concerned in the National Assembly.
Former parliamentary affairs minister Dr Sher Afgan Niazi told that it is a parliamentary convention that the President summons the newly elected National Assembly into session within 10 days after the publication of the official Gazette of the names of successful candidates.
He said since the media is very strong and vocal it would not be possible for the President to delay meeting of the National Assembly for a long time. Meanwhile, a large number of defeated candidates are filing election petitions in the Election Commission against their rival candidates for recounting or re-election in their constituencies.
Former federal ministers Ishaque Khan Khakwani and Dr Sher Afgan also filed their petitions with the Election Commission against the returned candidates.
Dr Sher Afgan, who contested the NA-72 Mianwali, has taken the plea that he has been declared defeated by 2,239 votes whereas RO rejected 6,286 ballot papers due to double stamping on more than one symbol in the ballot paper. He said that majority of the rejected votes were cast in his favour. Demanding recounting of votes, Khakawni said his rival was declared elected by a margin of 1,200 votes whereas 4,000 votes cast in his Vehari constituency had been rejected.