MUHAMMAD AKHTAR SHABBIR, J.---The petitioner has invoked the constitutional jurisdiction of this Court for issuance of direction to the respondents to make necessary arrangements to allow the registered voters of the country entered in the Electoral Rolls of 2002 to exercise their right of vote in the forthcoming Local Councils Elections.
2. Petitioner contended that the Electoral Rolls used in the general election 2002 are refined, amended and updated replica of the rolls prepared for Local Government Elections, 2001-2002.
Further contended that the electoral rolls prepared in 1986-87 had become obsolete due to many demographical changes in the country with the passage of time. The electoral rolls prepared for the Local Government Elections were of no use for the General Elections, inter alia for the reasons that the qualifying age for a voter for National Assembly and Provincial Assemblies elections initially was 21 years, whereas through the amendment in the law, person of the age of 18 years were allowed to exercise their right of franchise. In this process the names of all those people of the country were enrolled as voters in the said Electoral Rolls. The Chief Election Commissioner rightly decided to prepare the electoral rolls afresh for the conduct of General Elections, 2002. Further contended that during the preparation of electoral rolls for the General Elections, 2002, 28,58,329 new voters had been registered in Punjab and the said rolls contained names of 7,19,13,850 voters of the whole country out of which 4,12,53,858 voters were in the Province of Punjab. Further contended that more than two crores voters are being deprived of their right of franchise.
3. I have heard the argument of the petitioner and perused the record.
4. Section 157 of the Punjab Local Government Ordinance, 2001, provided that:-- ' Electoral Rolls
(1) A person shall be entitled to be enrolled as a voter if he---
(a) is a citizen of Pakistan;
(b) is not less than eighteen years of the first day of January of the year in which an election is to be held; and
(c) fulfils such other conditions as the Chief Election Commissioner may specify.
(2) The electoral rolls for the Local Government Elections shall be prepared by the Chief Election Commissioner in the manner he may deem appropriate and the electoral rolls shall not be invalid by reasons of any erroneous descriptions therein of any person listed or of an omission of the name of any person entitled to be enrolled or of inclusion of the name of any person not so entitled."
' It would mean that it is the function of the Chief Election Commissioner to prepare the electoral rolls for the Local Government Elections in any manner he deems appropriate. The Chief Election Commissioner has prepared the Electoral Rolls performing the procedure and providing opportunity to the people of the area inviting them to file their claims and objections for inclusion and exclusion of the names of the voters and for correction in the Electoral Rolls with the Assistant Registration Officers.
5. Before the announcement of the schedule of the present Local Government Elections, the Chief Election Commissioner through a Notification for updation of the Electoral Rolls notified the procedure of updation of electoral rolls prepared for the Local Government Election held in 200001.
Another Notification dated 20-12-2004 was issued in partial modification of, the earlier Notification by the Chief Election Commissioner publishing the revised programme for updation of electoral rolls, prepared for Local Government Elections held in 2000-2001 and the dates were displayed for filing of claims, objections and applications for corrections in the electoral rolls with the Registration Officers/Assistant Registration Officers and disposal of claims, objections and applications for corrections by the Registration Officers and filing of Representations with the revising Authorities. The whole process was completed by the Election Commission w.e.f. 9-8-2004 to 12-2-2005.
6. From the above circumstances, it is manifestly clear that Chief Election Commissioner has updated the electoral rolls for Local Government Elections, 2005 and made a publication of the final electoral rolls on 15-3-2005. Thereafter, completing the process of revision of electoral rolls, the Election Commissioner has asked the electors/voters of the area to elect their representatives.
For the purpose an election schedule has been issued for the candidates participating in the election process, who filed their nomination papers to contest election for different seats of Local Councils of the areas concerned.
7. The Legislature had passed an Act called as Electoral Rolls Act, 1974 for preparing the electoral rolls for the elections to the National Assembly as well as Provincial Assemblies as contemplated in section 4 of the Electoral Rolls Act, 1974 which reads as under:-- "4. Electoral Rolls for election to the Assemblies--- ' The electoral rolls to be prepared under this Act shall be prepared by revising the existing electoral rolls for the time being enforce."
' From the plain reading of the above provision of the said act, it reveals that under the Electoral Rolls Act, 1974, the electoral rolls shall be prepared/revised only for the general elections of National as well as Provincial Assemblies. There is no provision in the said Act that the electoral rolls prepared under the Act shall be used for Local Government Elections. Section 175 of the Punjab Local Government Ordinance, 2001 has empowered the Election Commissioner to prepare the electoral rolls for the said Election. The provision of section 4 of the Electoral Rolls Act, 1974 if read in conjunction with section 157(2) of the Punjab Local Government Ordinance, 2001, would manifestly make clear that the Electoral Rolls for General Election and Local Government Elections ought to be prepared separately. However, subsection (2) of section 157 of Local Government Ordinance, 2001 has empowered the Election Commission to adopt any procedure or process for providing revision, correction of the Rolls for the said polls. This is why the Election Commissioner has prepared the Electoral Rolls in the year 2000-01 for the Local Government Elections and thereafter these Electoral Rolls were revised and corrected by the Election Commissioner by providing opportunities to the voters of the area inviting their claims and objections and application for correct in the Electoral Rolls in the year.
8. The election rolls prepared for the General Elections in the year 2002 would not be used for present Local Council Elections. Neither there is any provision in the Electoral Rolls Act, 1974 nor the rules made thereunder that such rolls can be adopted by the Election Commissioner for Election of Local Government institutions nor there is any barring provision exists in the law. But the question is that the Chief Election Commissioner has not adopted those rolls through any subsequent notification. Rather the Commissioner had revised the already existing rolls prepared in the year 2001. The rule 4 of the Punjab Local Government Elections Rules, 2005 cast duty upon the Provincial Commissioner to provide copies of Electoral Rolls to the Returning Officers for each Union Council, who shall provide the same to the Presiding Officer of each polling station.
9. The voters of the area concerned would be entitled to cast their votes in favour of the candidate of their choice provided the name is entered in the Electoral Rolls provided to the Presiding Officers.
The Electoral Rolls prepared in 2002 for General Elections have not been provided to the Returning Officer/Presiding Officer.
10. The said controversy has been dealt with by the Honourable Judges of the Supreme Court in C.P.
No.1531/L of 2005 dated 11-8-2005. In this case, Shehzada Naseer petitioner filed his nomination papers for the seat of Nazim Union Council No.155-16, City Sargodha, which was rejected by the Returning Officer and upheld by, the High Court on the ground that name of the petitioner was not entered in the Electoral Rolls provided to the Returning Officer by the Commissioner. His name was appearing in the Electoral Rolls for the year, 2002. The Honourable Supreme Court did not agree with the petitioner even though his vote was entered in the said rolls but was not appearing in the Rolls pertaining to the year 2001 updated in the year 2004. The Supreme Court observed that no illegality was committed by the Returning Officer or by the High Court.
11. For the foregoing reasons and in following the principle/dictum laid down by the Honourable apex Court in the above-said case, this petition being devoid of any force is dismissed in limine.