The Peshawar High Court has suspended the Election Commission’s decision regarding the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) intra-party election.
In its ruling, the court specified that the general elections are slated for February 8, 2024, with symbol allotment on January 13. The court suspended the Election Commission’s December 22 order, citing that depriving a party of its election symbol wasn’t within the Election Commission’s constitutional authority.
During the hearing, PTI argued that the Election Commission had exceeded its powers. Barrister Ali Zafar contended that the Commission’s order, withdrawing PTI’s election symbol ‘Billa’, was both illegal and unconstitutional. The argument emphasized that without an election symbol, participation in elections as a political party becomes problematic, as specific seats can’t be allocated. Reference was made to Supreme Court rulings on the significance of election symbols, emphasizing that the Election Commission hadn’t stated any issues with how the elections were conducted.
Justice Kamran Hayat Mian Khel raised questions regarding Omar Ayub’s position as General Secretary and his authority to appoint the Chief Election Commissioner. Ali Zafar clarified that such matters don’t fall within the Election Commission’s jurisdiction to nullify intra-party elections, suggesting that objections should be addressed in civil courts, as per constitutional provisions.
The Election Commission had annulled PTI’s intra-party elections on December 22, withdrawing the bat symbol due to purported failures in conducting transparent elections. Serious objections were raised against PTI’s Chief Election Commissioner, Niazullah Niazi, and his appointment was deemed a violation of Article 9 of the PTI Constitution. PTI had conducted intra-party elections on December 2, but objections were raised by the political finance wing regarding the election records.
Overall, the court suspended the Election Commission’s decision, highlighting issues of jurisdiction and constitutional validity, emphasizing that intra-party election annulment wasn’t within the Commission’s purview.
