Election Commission announces a public holiday on 25th July

The Chief Election Commissioner, Sardar Muhammad Raza Khan has declared a general holiday on Wednesday, 25th July to enable voters to use their right of casting vote freely and conveniently.

The polls are scheduled to take place on 25th July from 9 am to 6 pm across the country. The ECP had said the polling time will be extended only in a situation of extreme emergency on the day of the election. The General Elections 2018 will be contested by 3,459 candidates for 849 seats including Provincial and National Assemblies. Earlier, the ECP also announced that voters will not be allowed to bring their mobile phones to the polling stations.

Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) also announced that all district returning officers (DROs), returning officers (ROs) and presiding officers (POs) have been given First Class Magistrate powers until the final election results are announced. It means that all DROs, ROs and POs will have the right to instantly give punishments to people if they find them violating the law or creating any chaos.

The General Elections are held every 5 years with the majority winning party forming their government. The previous elections were held on 11 May 2013 wherein the Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML N) formed the government and the party leader Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif was elected to be the Prime Minister of Pakistan for the third time.

On the arrival of ex-Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and Maryam Nawaz, Punjab Provincial government has also announced to suspend the mobile services in Lahore today in order to control the law and order situation of the city. According to notice, the telecom service will remain suspended from 3 pm to 11 pm today in certain areas of Lahore.