Reporting snapshot · 26 September 2026. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has sent opposition leader Mahmood Khan Achakzai another letter inviting him for talks, proposing a meeting at the Prime Minister House on the three pending appointments in the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP). The invitation came hours after the opposition announced the postponement of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) long march on Islamabad. Achakzai had previously suggested the consultation be held in the Constitution Room of Parliament House, and he has yet to respond formally. This account is a dated snapshot based on reporting published on 26 September.
What happened
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has sent another letter to National Assembly opposition leader Mahmood Khan Achakzai, inviting him for a meeting at the Prime Minister House on three key appointments in the Election Commission of Pakistan, The News International reported on Saturday. Sources close to the opposition leader said the meeting has been proposed at the Prime Minister House — contrary to Achakzai’s earlier suggestion that the consultation take place in the Constitution Room of Parliament House.
The outreach, first reported on Friday, came soon after the opposition announced it was postponing the PTI long march on Islamabad originally planned for September 27, apparently as part of a bid to ensure political stability, Dawn reported. Prime Minister Shehbaz is currently in the United States to attend the United Nations General Assembly and is expected to return within a few days.
Opposition spokesperson Akhunzada Hussain Yousafzai confirmed that the opposition leader had received the letter. He said the government appeared to be backtracking on commitments made during earlier meetings, adding: “We have received the letter. We expect Rana Sanaullah and others to stand by their word,” as Geo News reported.
The appointments at stake
The consultation covers three positions in the electoral watchdog. Chief Election Commissioner Sikandar Sultan Raja, Sindh ECP member Nisar Ahmad Durrani and Balochistan member Shah Muhammad Jatoi formally completed their terms on 26 January, but continue to hold office, The News reported. Under the 26th Constitutional Amendment, the incumbents remain in place until successors are appointed.
Achakzai, who heads the Tehreek Tahafuz Aiyeen-e-Pakistan (TTAP) alliance and is chairman of the Pakhtoonkhwa Milli Awami Party, had drawn the prime minister’s attention to the appointments in a letter on 10 August. He cited two provisions of the Constitution: Article 213(2A), which he said mandates that the prime minister, in consultation with the leader of the opposition in the National Assembly, forward three names for the appointment of the chief election commissioner to a parliamentary committee for hearing and confirmation; and Article 218(2)(b), which requires that appointments of ECP members from each province follow the same consultation procedure under Article 213.
In August, a government delegation comprising Prime Minister’s Adviser Rana Sanaullah, Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Tariq Fazal Chaudhry had met Achakzai, who expressed willingness for a meeting in the Constitution Room. The government then assured him that the constitutional procedure would be followed in making the appointments.
A renewed invitation after the march postponement
The fresh letter follows a pattern of intermittent contact between the government and the opposition over the ECP appointments. The prime minister had first responded to Achakzai’s August letter in early September and, on 11 September, invited him for the mandatory consultation on appointing a new chief election commissioner, as KhabarWire reported at the time. Achakzai responded by indicating he was available for a meeting, and suggested the consultation be held in the Constitution Room of Parliament House, before the latest letter proposed the Prime Minister House instead.
The timing is notable. The invitation was extended just as the PTI announced, after days of consultations, that its long march on Islamabad — scheduled for September 27 — would instead depart from Peshawar on October 4. Sources close to the opposition leader told The News that the government, in its latest communication, appeared to have stepped back from the understanding reached when the prime minister’s team visited the opposition leader’s chamber.
National Assembly Speaker Sardar Ayaz Sadiq had earlier urged both the prime minister and the opposition leader to sit together for consultations on appointing a new chief election commissioner, stressing the need for political harmony and stability.
Why the process matters
The chief election commissioner and the provincial members oversee the conduct of elections and the delimitation of constituencies. The constitutional procedure requiring the prime minister to consult the leader of the opposition before forwarding names to a parliamentary committee is designed to keep the selection of the electoral commission’s leadership outside the control of a single party. With the incumbents continuing to serve under the 26th Amendment proviso, the delay in filling the posts means the ECP’s top positions remain in a transitional, contested status even as the political calendar moves towards the next electoral cycle.
The latest exchange also carries political weight beyond the appointments themselves. The prime minister’s renewed invitation was seen as an effort to keep channels of communication open with the opposition at a moment when the PTI-led opposition had been mobilising against the government, and after the long march was put off. The opposition, for its part, has repeatedly conditioned progress on the government honouring earlier assurances.
What is still uncertain
It remains unclear whether and when the meeting will take place. Achakzai had not formally responded to the latest letter as of the reporting date, according to sources cited by The News, and the venue remains a point of difference: the opposition leader wants the Constitution Room of Parliament House, while the prime minister’s invitation proposed the Prime Minister House. The prime minister’s absence from the country for the UN General Assembly may also affect scheduling.
The broader question is whether the consultation will finally produce a new chief election commissioner and provincial members, or continue to stall amid the wider government-opposition standoff. As with all such reporting, this is a dated snapshot of a developing political process rather than a forecast.
Sources & reporting notes
This is a synthesis of published reporting, not eyewitness coverage. Sources were reviewed on 26 September 2026. The account rests on reporting published on 25–26 September; the invitation itself was extended on Friday, 25 September 2026, and reported in Saturday's newspapers.
- The News International — PM invites Achakzai to discuss ECP appointments26 September 2026 · The second letter from the prime minister, the proposed Prime Minister House venue, the three ECP positions, the continued tenure under the 26th Amendment, and Achakzai's constitutional citations.
- Dawn — PM invites Achakzai for 'direct talks'26 September 2026 · The renewed invitation after the PTI long-march postponement, the prime minister's absence at the UN General Assembly, the earlier 11 September invitation and the Article 213(2A) requirement.
- Geo News (Urdu) — PM writes another letter to opposition leader Achakzai, invites talks26 September 2026 · Confirmation from opposition spokesperson Akhunzada Hussain Yousafzai of receipt of the letter, the talks invitation, and the ECP appointments discussed.
