LAHORE: The Punjab government on Monday requested the Lahore High Court to declare infractuous various petitions challenging the amendments to the local government law changing the procedure for election of mayors/deputy mayors from secret ballot to show of hands and `selection` instead of election for filling up the reserved seats in various local bodies.

A press release issued here saidthat the advocate general of Punjab also appeared before the LHC chief justice and prayed for declaring various petitions filed by different political parties as infractuous after withdrawal of the amendments.

It said the court has fixed the case for Aug 3 for early hearing and disposal.

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif personally directed Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif to supervise and oversee the completion of the local government process and `to ensure that the local representatives elected by the people are fully empowered for performing their assigned functions and should also be given more authority through devolution to address the local needsof common citizens through elected representatives`, the release added.

Through the ordinance the government had changed the procedure for election to reserved seats in local bodiesaftertheElectionCommission of Pakistan (ECP) announced its schedule to fill the seats.

The amended law not only changed the procedure for election of mayors/chairpersons from secret to show of hands but also robbed the local bodies of an opportunity to convene their maiden session(s) after election of their mayors/chairpersons on their own and instead empowered the provincial government to call the first meeting(s).

The ordinance promulgated by the governor in January also con-verted the indirect election on the reserved seats to `selections` by introducing proportionate system like in vogue for the National and Provincial Assemblies in which the political parties submit their lists of priority candidates.

The new procedure deprived the elected representatives of local bodies of their right to elect their colleagues on seats for women, youth, peasants/workers and non-Muslims and instead further control of the party leadership on the municipalities.

The move had irked the opposition which termed an unconstitutional measure with `mala fide` intentions and challenged the same with the higher courts.