Daily Times

The Peshawar High Court (PHC) accepted on Wednesday the Election Commission of Pakistan’s (ECP) intra-court appeal and restored the electoral watchdog’s decision against PTI’s intra-party polls.

The ECP had challenged the high court’s decision against its December 22 verdict declaring the PTI’s intra-party polls null and void and the subsequent withdrawal of the party’s electoral symbol of ‘cricket bat’.

The court had earlier reserved its verdict on a review plea. The verdict was reserved after the PTI and ECP counsels concluded their arguments. As the hearing commenced, presided over by Justice Ejaz Khan, PTI counsel Qazi Anwar and Shah Faisal appeared in court along with ECP counsel Sikander Basheer Mohmand.

PTI’s counsel argued that the election commission was not a judicial institution and added that the court’s order of December 26 had not been implemented yet.

He further argued that the ECP seeking intervention by the court for or against its verdicts amounted to contempt of court.

The party’s counsel also inquired about the ECP’s authority to challenge a high court order and stated that the electoral watchdog has yet to issue a certificate for the party’s intra-party polls.

The electoral body’s counsel contended that PTI had filed an injunction against the ECP’s order. “We have the right to file a writ petition against it,” he said and added that their case could not be heard in the PHC. “They should have gone to the Supreme Court instead,” the lawyer maintained. Anwar protested that the ECP did not have the authority to declare the intra-party polls invalid. “PTI has previously contested the 2013 and 2018 elections on the bat symbol,” he stated.

After hearing arguments from both sides, the court reserved its decision.

During the hearing on January 2, the electoral body’s counsel had contended that the ECP sought a review of the PHC’s ruling. “Election commission had issued a notice to the PTI as the intra-party elections were not conducted properly,” the advocate had stated.

“Questions were raised over the authority of the election commission and it was said that the election commission’s decision was unconstitutional even though the single-bench suspended the decision without listening to the ECP”, the lawyer had argued and added that even though the electoral body was a part of this case, the PHC had not heeded ECP’s arguments.

The lawyer had further said that neither is the federal government a part of this case nor does the Centre play a role in the election commission’s decision-making. “The election commission is an independent body which reserves the prerogative to give its judgments,” the advocate maintained and stated that whatever the ECP decides, becomes the final judgement.

It should be noted that the PTI’s counsel was absent from the hearing held on January 2. The PHC had then issued a notice to the PTI lawyer to present his arguments.

On December 22, the electoral watchdog invalidated PTI’s internal elections, resulting in the withdrawal of the party’s iconic ‘cricket bat’ symbol.

“So keeping in view, the clear mandate of Elections Act, 2017 read with PTI constitution 2019, it is held that PTI has not complied with our directions rendered therein order dated November 23, 2023 and failed to hold intra-party election in accordance with [the] PTI prevailing constitution, 2019 and Election Act, 2017, and Election Rules, 2017,” the ECP’s written order had read.

In the intra-party elections held earlier in December 2023, on the electoral body’s order, Barrister Gohar Ali Khan was elected as the PTI’s new chairman. Gohar was nominated by Imran Khan — the PTI’s founder, who is currently incarcerated in Rawalpindi’s Adiala jail.

However, on December 26, the PHC, presided over by a single judge Justice Kamran Hayat Miankhel, suspended the commission’s decision to nullify the PTI’s intra-party polls and revoke its ‘cricket bat’ symbol.

The court in its order had directed the commission to publish the PTI’s certificate on its website and restore the electoral symbol of the party.

“As elections are scheduled to be held on 8th February 2024 and the last date for allotment of election symbols is January 13, 2024, so keeping in view the urgency that a political party has been denuded of its symbol, meaning thereby that aspirants from the general public who were willing to vote for the petitioners’ party were divested of their right to vote as per their choice,” it added.

The judge had further directed that notices be issued to all the respondents for January 9 and that the order would remain operative until then.

The ECP held a meeting following the PHC’s decision. The commission then decided to challenge the PHC decision through an intra-court appeal filed on December 30, 2023. According to the ECP’s legal experts, the decision of a sole judge of the PHC without hearing the commission was against the principles of justice.