ISLAMABAD: The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Wednesday dismissed Milli Muslim League’s (MML) request to register as a political party.
MML has been striving to register itself as a political party since 2017.
Earlier ECP had directed the party to obtain security clearance certificate from the Ministry of Interior (MOI) last year when it had filed for registration.
Earlier this year United States had listed MML to its list of Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTO) under section 219 of the Immigration and Nationality Act, on the grounds that the party was a front for banned terrorist outfit Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT).
MML made a surprise appearance in 2017 with an impressive show at NA-120 by-election in Lahore with party’s backed candidates making subsequent gains in by-elections in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
The party is headed by globally listed terrorist Hafiz Saeed, which was the reason ECP rejected party’s request for registration.
ECP’s decision was overturned by Islamabad High Court (IHC) directing the ECP to hear MML’s plea properly and then give its verdict.