- Thursday, December 26, 2024
The decision of the Election Commission of Pakistan may help the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf become the largest political party in Parliament
By: Shajil Kumar
In a major setback to Pakistan’s ruling coalition, the election commission has notified 39 successful MPs as lawmakers of jailed former prime minister Imran Khan’s party following a landmark Supreme Court directive.
The decision of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) may help the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) become the largest political party in Parliament.
The ECP finally took action to implement the July 12 judgment of the apex court which ruled that the PTI was a legitimate political party and those MPs who were elected as independents could join it.
PTI was not allowed to nominate candidates for the February 8 general elections as it was deprived of its symbol of cricket bat due to failure to hold elections.
However, its supported independent candidates won more seats than any other party.
Later, the party decided that they should join the Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC) to secure a share of the seats reserved for women and minorities.
However, the ECP refused to award reserved seats to the SIC, saying that it had not won any seats and all its members won independently.
The SIC filed an appeal in the Peshawar High Court, which rejected it.
The matter landed in the Supreme Court which on July 12 declared that the PTI was a political party and eligible to receive reserved seats for women and non-Muslims in the national and provincial assemblies.
The ruling meant that independent members of the parliament who won elections with the support of PTI could join it. Earlier, PTI’s 80 elected members had joined SIC.
The judgement explained that 39 members, who the ECP showed as PTI candidates, belonged to the party, while the rest of the 41 independents would have to file duly notarised statements before the commission within 15 days, explaining that they contested the February 8 elections as a candidate of a particular political party.
The ECP after discussion noted that 39 members, who were declared as PTI lawmakers, had mentioned their affiliation with the party in their nomination papers before the elections.
“The 41 candidates who have been declared independent had neither mentioned PTI in their nomination papers nor disclosed their affiliation with the party. And also did not submit any party ticket. Therefore, the returning officers allowed them to participate in the election as independent candidates,” the ECP had explained.
Riots case
A Pakistani court on Thursday set aside the physical remand of Imran Khan in connection with 12 cases linked to last year’s May 9 riots, in a major relief to the jailed former prime minister who has been imprisoned for almost a year.
On July 16, an anti-terrorism court granted Punjab police Khan’s 10-day physical remand in a dozen cases linked to the May 9 riots.
Supporters of Khan attacked several important government buildings and army installations following his arrest in an alleged corruption case in May last year.
The Punjab police last week arrested Khan in 12 terrorism cases, including an attack on a senior army officer in Lahore, soon after he and his wife Bushra Bibi were acquitted in the Iddat case, making sure the cricketer-turned-politician remains in Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi.
On July 18, Khan approached the Lahore High Court challenging his physical remand in 12 criminal cases of last year’s violent attacks on military facilities and other properties, including the Lahore corps commander’s residence.
Khan, the 71-year-old Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder, had argued that the anti-terrorism court order be declared illegal and set aside, and that his custody be transferred from the police to judicial custody. (PTI)
