ISLAMABAD: Retired Justice Irshad Qaiser, a Member of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, took the oath as the acting Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) on Monday.

She is the first woman in the country to hold the CEC`s office, though only for a week.

But an apparent deviation from the Constitution was also made in her oath-taking in an otherwise positive development.

Under Article 214 of the Constitution, the oath to the CEC is administered by the chief justice of Pakistan, but to the surprise of many, it was done by the most junior member of the ECP, retired Justice Shakeel Ahmad Baloch the only member present in the country besides her.

The article says: `Before entering upon of fice, the commissioner shall make oath before the Chief Justice of Pakistan and a member of Election Commission of Pakistan shall make before the commissioner oath in the form set out in the Third Schedule.

Before the 22nd Amendment to the Constitution, ajudge of the Supreme Court nominated by the chief justice was appointed as acting CEC in case of absence or inability of the incumbent to perform his functions, but Article 217 was amended to provide for appointment of the most senior member of the ECP in such a case.

The provision regarding the administration of oath was, however, not altered.

An ECP official said the Supreme Court had not refused to administer the oath and the decision had been taken by the commission on its own.

He said a summary had been sent to the Prime Minister`s Of fice through the parliamentary affairs division for appointment of retired Justice Qaiser as the acting CEC and specifying the name of retired Justice Baloch for administration of the oath to her, which was approved.

In reply to a question, he said it also happened in the Supreme Court where the chief justice was required under the Constitution to take the oath from the president, but an acting CJ was often administered oath by a fellow judge.

Before CEC retired Justice Sardar Muhammad Raza,accompanied by two senior members of the ECP, flew to the United States on Friday, the commission delegated its powers to the two members left in the country.

The powers were delegated under Section 4 of the Representation of the People Act that says: `The Commission may authorise its chairman or any of its members or any of the officers of the Commission to exercise and perform all or any of its powers and functions under this Act.

ECP Additional Secretary Fida Muhammad told Dawn that the CEC and the members from Sindh and Balochistan were scheduled to attend an important global conference in Washington and during their absence the acting CEC and the member of Balochistan would have all powers of the commission.

Moreover, he said, a decision was to be taken by the majority and it was not that difficult because relevant documents and signatures of the CEC and other members could be obtained electronically.

He recalled that Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif had approved the budget through video link while he was in the United Kingdom.