ISLAMABAD: The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has announced the schedule for the upper house of the Parliament.
According to the schedule, polling for 48 Senate seats will take place on April 3 in the national and four provincial assemblies. Sindh and Punjab will elect twelve senators each, while two senators will be chosen from Islamabad. Moreover, eleven new senators will join the upper house from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan respectively.
Fifty-two senators are set to retire after completing their six-year term on March 11. This includes twelve senators each from Punjab and Sindh, along with four senators from the former Fata. Similarly, eleven senators from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan, as well as two from Islamabad, will retire on the same date, marking the end of their six-year tenure.
Following the 25th constitutional amendment, there will be no re-election for the four Senate seats representing the former Fata.
In the Senate elections, the Punjab Assembly will elect 12 new members, comprising seven general, two women, two technocrats, and one minority member.
The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) along with coalition partners including the Peoples Party, Muslim League-Q, and IPP, are set to contest the Senate elections. Additionally, the Sunni Ittehad Council will field its candidates.
On March 8, 2024, 11 senators from Punjab are due to complete their term and retire. Notable figures among them include PML-N’s Dr. Asif Kirmani, Dr. Musadik Malik, Rana Mahmoodul Hassan, and Khalid Shaheen Butt.
Among those retiring after completing their term on women-reserved seats are PML-N Senator Nuzhat Sadiq and PTI’s Seemi Aizdi. Two PTI senators retiring after completing their term are Dr. Shahzad Wasim and Waleed Iqbal.
Additionally, two senators from Punjab will conclude their six-year tenure on technocrat and ulema reserved seats, including Hafiz Abdul Kareem and Ishaq Dar supported by PML-N. Kamran Michael from Punjab will also retire from the minority reserved seat.
