APML registered as political party, now eligible to contest polls

The Election Commission of Pakistan on Tuesday registered former military ruler General (r) Pervez Musharraf’s All Pakistan Muslim League (APML) after a delay of over one year owing to legal challenges.Musharraf had launched the APML in October last year in United Kingdom. He had recently announced that his party will participate in 2013 general elections.             The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has registered fourteen new political parties, except for former president Pervez Musharraf’s All Pakistan Muslim League (APML), Express 24/7 reported on Wednesday.
Sources have said that the APML was handed a rejection because two other parties with the same name had also tried to register with the ECP.
Musharraf had launched the APML in October last year and had recently announced that he would return to Pakistan in 2012, in order to participate in the 2013 elections.
The ECP also decided to form a tribunal to hear election petitions and said the cases will be decided within four months.
A door-to-door process for voter registration will begin on July 18. The data is expected to be compiled into an electronic list.
The ECP has also stated that 23 by-polls held after the 18^th Amendment need parliamentary approval and asked that an amendment be brought in for legal cover.