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Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar, the caretaker prime minister, promised on Saturday that the interim administration will not find any justification for postponing the elections in an effort to put an end to the uncertainty surrounding them.

The caretaker premier assured that steps would be taken to ensure that the election process goes off without a hitch in an interview with Voice of America before leaving for the UN General Assembly meeting in New York.

He also emphasized the commitment to upholding the country's democratic process. The prime minister reaffirmed his resolve, saying, "Elections won't be postponed because of the situation at the borders or a law and order issue."

Additionally, he emphasized his confidence in his ability to complete the election process and deal with security challenges at the nation's borders.

The country's prime minister reaffirmed that the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) had the right to choose a date for the general elections, and he expressed his trust that the electoral watchdog would carry out the process honestly given that it had already taken some initial measures.

In relation to the availability of financial resources and security for the polls, he stated that the interim setup was prepared to support the ECP. In response to a query regarding the prior delays in the staging of elections in two provinces, the prime minister noted that there might have been some challenges at that time that were acknowledged by various forums.

 Elections cannot be held within 90 days. Ahead of the legislatures' dissolution, the Council of Common Interest (CCI) approved the 7th Population and Housing Census in 2023, almost guaranteeing that elections won't be place within the 90-day window allowed by the law.

 Following new delimitations in light of the findings of the 7th census, the poll monitor was required by the CCI's authorisation to hold elections. Later, on August 17, the ECP announced the timetable for new delimitations to be conducted in accordance with the updated census that the CCI had approved. According to plan, this year's December will see notification of the new delineation of constituencies across the country.

Since fresh delimitation will take approximately four months according to the ECP timeline, the country's general elections cannot be held within 90 days of the dissolution of the national and provincial assemblies.

In response to a question, PM Kakar stated that there was freedom of speech in the nation and that their regional metrics were far better in this regard. "Media has the freedom and can raise voice or air any issue regarding the government, its institutions, or the economic issues," he claimed. Regarding Imran Khan's cases, the chairman of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), he vehemently refuted the notion that attempts were being made to keep the ousted prime out of politics.

He said it was a sub-judice situation as there were allegations against him, adding the perception that his arrest was not right and hoped that the legal procedure would be clear. Replying to another query, he remarked that the caretaker government was working owing to He was proposed by the National Assembly's opposition and the former Leader of the House as part of an ongoing constitutional process. Will keep bringing up the Kashmir issue.

 He emphasized that because it was the oldest and most unsolved item on the UN Security Council's agenda, Pakistan would continue to bring up the Indian Illegally Occupied and Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK) issue in all international and regional fora. In all the various global and regional fora, he claimed that Islamabad had continuously and routinely defended and advocated for the Kashmir problem and would do so until it was resolved. Gross human rights violations occurred in IIOJK, the region had been transformed into the biggest prison in the world, and Kashmiris' voices had been muffled, he said.

"Long-lasting peace in Afghanistan"

The interim prime minister insisted that Pakistan was cooperating with the international community and the Taliban in all appropriate fora to ensure a lasting peace in Afghanistan and the surrounding area. According to him, the Taliban pledged, as part of the Doha Agreement, that no country would be targeted by terrorists using Afghan land. He claimed that they were dealing with difficulties related to Afghan transit, such as the illegal trade, and that as they all came to understand the value of regional economic connectivity, trade relations were also developing with all of the Central Asian Republics. In response to a question about terrorist incidents occurring on Afghan land, he stated that Pakistan reserved the right to protect itself from any terrorist activities.

and would, where necessary, take the appropriate action to protect its citizens and its territory. He replied without going into any detail, but when the time came, they would make the proper decisions in this area. In response to a query, PM Kakar stated that his remarks on the weapons that the US and NATO left behind in Afghanistan ending up in the hands of terrorist organizations were not intended to make any accusations against the US or any other nation, and that the impression in this respect was false. The prime minister downplayed Islamabad's isolation and said that Pakistan has solid ties with the Arab, Gulf, and other neighboring nations. He also stated that in the upcoming years, the decades-long connection with the West would become even stronger.