PESHAWAR: The Peshawar High Court (PHC) on Wednesday revoked the stay order granted by its single-member bench, restoring the Election Commission of Pakistan’s (ECP) decision to declare PTI intra-party polls null and void and stripping it of its election symbol — bat.
A single-member bench comprising Justice Ejaz Khan announced the verdict that the court had reserved hours earlier.
Election commission’s lawyer Sikander Bashir Mohmand and PTI’s legal team — comprising Advocates Shah Faisal Uthmankhel and Qazi Anwar — appeared in the courtroom.
In its six-page order, the PHC noted that its earlier verdict had “prima facie created hindrance in the smooth process of the election which Is to be conducted by the ECP”.
“…the interim order of this court passed in favour of the PTI is hereby recalled and consequently the Election Commission of Pakistan is directed to proceed with the election process as per its constitutional mandate.”
The electoral body had filed a review petition at the high court against the PHC’s December 26 decision, which had suspended the ECP’s order and restored the party’s ‘bat’ symbol till a final decision on the matter.
The ECP, in its order on December 22, had declared PTI’s intra-party polls “illegal” and stripped it of using the ‘bat’ symbol.
Following its order, the former ruling party approached the PHC, seeking to restore its electoral symbol ahead of the general elections slated for February 8, as it is a major voter driving force.
In its petition, the ECP requested the court review the PTI’s intra-party elections and its decision related to the election symbol.
Barrister Asad Rahim Khan told Geo.tv that following the setback in the PHC, the party can still knock on the doors of the Supreme Court of Pakistan.
“[However, PTI] also has a division bench hearing in the PHC on the 9th. Depending on that decision, it can then go to the Supreme Court,” the legal expert added.
Talking to reporters in Rawalpindi, PTI’s former chairman Barrister Gohar Khan said his party would move the apex court after due deliberations, noting that the SC “would not let this matter slide”.
“The Supreme Court has already stated that revoking a party’s symbol is tantamount to disbanding the entire party,” the PTI leader said, hoping that his party would get relief from the top court.
Gohar noted that all PTI ticket holders would run as independent candidates if the apex court did not accept the party’s plea, however, he said today’s decision has “damaged” democracy.
The hearing
At the outset of the hearing, Advocate Anwar said that he, along with Barrister Gohar Khan, will represent the PTI in this case.
“The political parties, in the court, said that they stand with the Election Commission,” said Anwar.
At this, Justice Khan said: “We have learned from you that these things are baseless in the eyes of law as whatever happens outside the court has nothing to do with the hearing”.
“Can the ECP approach the court against the high court’s ruling?” questioned PTI’s lawyer calling the electoral body’s petition incorrect.
Advocate Anwar said that the PHC announced its verdict on December 26, however, it has not yet been implemented. “Election Commission has not yet issued the [PTI] intra-party election certificate on the website,” he added.
“Did your party file any contempt case in this matter?” asked Justice Khan.
Following this, the PTI’s counsel said that sidelining a party was not good for the ECP or the democracy.
He said that the PTI wants the ECP to conduct free and fair elections.
Advocate Anwar then inquired about the electoral body’s authority to challenge a high court order.
Later, the ECP’s counsel told the court that the body was not removing any political party from the list but required the parties to follow its laws.
Mohmand said that the PTI did not conduct intra-party polls, hence, the party elections have been declared null and void. He requested the court to withdraw the PTI’s stay order.
The court then reserved the verdict after hearing arguments from both sides.
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has proposed seven individuals to its founder, Imran Khan, for consideration as founding members of PTI for membership in the next Judicial Commission.
None of the nominated individuals are attorneys; rather, the roster includes four Members of the National Assembly (MNAs) and three senators.
The proposed MNAs are Umar Ayub, Asad Qaiser, Ali Mohammad Khan, and Aamir Dogar, while the senators are Shibli Faraz, Mohsen Aziz, and Aun Abbas Bapi. Sources suggest that the Judicial Commission will include one opposition member from both the National Assembly and the Senate.
The PTI founder will evaluate and endorse two names from the suggested list, which will then be sent to the Speaker for future actions.
Following his removal as prime minister in 2022, Khan started a protest movement against a coalition of his enemies led by current Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif. Since then, he has been in jail since August 2023 and has been involved in hundreds of cases.
In response to ARY News’ question over the congressmen’s letter during a media briefing in Washington on Monday, State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller stated, “We will respond in due course to the members.”
The United States wants to see Pakistan maintain its democracy, Miller stated.
The release of the PTI founder’s wife and sisters was a result of a meeting between the US Deputy Assistant Secretary and a Pakistani government representative in Islamabad, which was further questioned during the press briefing.
“I won’t be addressing that,” Miller said when asked if the United States was involved in their release. Miller did, however, affirm that the conference included the defense of Pakistan’s basic liberties and rights.
Sixty-two members of the US Congress urged President Joe Biden on October 24 to support the release of Imran Khan, the former prime minister of Pakistan, and other political prisoners.
The congressmen, who included well-known Muslim members Rashida Tlaib and Ilhan Omar, said in their letter that the Biden administration should ask Pakistani authorities to guarantee the safety of PTI founder Imran Khan.
They also underlined that US policy should concentrate on Pakistan’s human rights situation and asked that US ambassadors attend the PTI leader’s incarceration.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, the chairman of the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP), recently met, and the inside story of their conversation has revealed important political developments.
The leaders talked about a variety of constitutional and governance matters, including the proposed 27th Constitutional Amendment, according to sources.
One of the primary outcomes of the conference was the decision to expeditiously introduce a bill in parliament that would increase the number of judges on the Supreme Court. Immediately after it is introduced in parliament, this law is expected to be approved in a matter of days.
In addition, the recently ratified 26th Constitutional Amendment was discussed, with particular attention paid to creating a system for the establishment of constitutional benches at the federal and provincial levels. The formation of constitutional benches would be the subject of formal meetings, they agreed.
Furthermore, the leaders examined the pending measure concerning the Muttahida Qaumi Movement’s (MQM) municipal authority, which has been sent to the appropriate committee for additional assessment.
They also discussed the implementation of an agreement on Punjabi issues between the PPP and the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N). According to sources, the conference also discussed the status of an agreement over fund release and administrative jobs in Punjab.
Bilawal Bhutto was reassured by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif that the federal government would continue to support continued development initiatives in Sindh.
PM Sharif and Bilawal met on Sunday at the premier’s Model Town home in Lahore, where they talked about the newly ratified 26th Constitutional Amendment and pledged to support Pakistan’s parliamentary system and democracy.
As a historic step, Bilawal Bhutto celebrated the 26th Constitutional Amendment’s adoption during the meeting. He said: “We will work together to strengthen democracy and parliament.”
In agreement, Shehbaz credited the amendment’s accomplishment to the combined efforts of all coalition members. He promised that his commitment to the people would not falter and reiterated his commitment to public service.