Election delay ‘possible’, says Khawaja Asif

ISLAMABAD: Defence Minister Khawaja Asif has said general elections in the country could be delayed by 30 to 60 days over procedural and technical matters.

In an interview to a US TV channel, the defence minister said the National Assembly (NA) would be dissolved by August 9 evening, after which the constitution states that the elections must be held within 90 days.

Reaffirming his government’s resolve of holding timely polls by November, Asif said Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) may postpone the elections for one or two months under exceptional circumstances.

The defence minister said the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government derailed the economic progress of the country, setting it back 20 years.

Underplaying political instability in the country, defence minister said frequent change of prime ministers is something that has also happened in the United Kingdom.

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