Election through show of hands: SHC strikes down amendment to Sindh LG Act 2013

The Sindh High Court (SHC) on Wednesday struck down the fourth amendment to Sindh Local Government Act 2013, which had changed the procedure of election of mayors and deputy mayors from secret balloting to show of hands. An SHC bench headed by Justice Syed Hasan Azhar Rizvi announced its verdict after hearing the identical petitions filed by Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) and Pakistan Muslim League-Functional (PML-F) requesting the court to annul the fourth amendment to Sindh Local Government Act 2013.
Five identical petitions were filed by the MQM and PML-F pleading the court to set aside the amendment made by Sindh government. The petitioners pleaded that the amendment was in violation of Article 266 of constitution which allows secret polling. The Constitution states that all election, except those of prime minister and chief minister, shall be held through secret balloting; therefore any procedure held for electing Local Government (LG) representatives by showing hands will be against the constitution, they argued. MQM and PML-F had requested the court to declare the amendment null and void.
Later, Pakistan People's Party_ the ruling party of Sindh which passed the amendment, courtesy its majority in Sindh Assembly, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf and Jamaat-e-Islami joined the proceedings by filing intervener petitions. The court after hearing the arguments from all sides, directed the election authorities to conduct the election through secret balloting.