Islamabad: Pakistan's Election Commission today reversed its decision to postpone crucial by-polls by two months in the wake of sharp criticism from the ruling coalition and announced that they would be held on June 26.

"The by-elections to the national and provincial assemblies will be held on June 26," Election Commission Secretary Kanwar Dilshad told reporters. The polls were earlier scheduled for June 18.

The federal government decided to ask the poll panel to hold the by-elections in June after the announcement of a two-month postponement caused a major controversy within the ruling coalition.

The PML-N, a key ally in the coalition led by the Pakistan People's Party, yesterday sought action against senior PPP leader Rehman Malik after it emerged that he had asked the North West Frontier Province government to seek the postponement of the by-polls.

PPP co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani, who met here late last night, decided to ask the Election Commission to hold the by-polls to eight national and 30 provincial assembly seats in June instead of deferring them.

Sources said Zardari and Gilani agreed that the sudden announcement by the poll panel to defer the by-polls had caused "huge embarrassment" to the PPP and created confusion within the coalition.

Source : PTI