ISLAMABAD: PTI foun­­der Imran Khan on Wed­nesday approached the Supreme Court to seek the constitution of a judicial commission to conduct a thorough audit by inquiring into the manner and process of the Feb 8 general elections, as well as subsequent developments involving the compiling of what he called ‘false’ and ‘fraudulent’ results, rendering winners into losers and losers into winners.

Moved through senior counsel Hamid Khan, the petition, which was jointly filed by Mr Khan and his PTI, contended that members of the commission should consist of Supreme Court judges who hold no bias against anyone.

The petition has also sought the immediate suspension of all consequential acts of forming governments at the centre and in Punjab until the findings of the judicial commission are made public.

The federal government through the law ministry, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), the PML-N, PPP, and MQM-P have been named in the petition as respondents.

The petition regretted that a political party with elected members in the National and provincial assemblies cannot be deprived of reserved seats in these assemblies in proportion to the elected members, in accordance with Article 51 and Article 106 of the Constitution.

In 2015, a judicial commission constituted to probe PTI’s allegations of rigging in the 2013 general elections had concluded that the polls were, in large part, organised and conducted fairly and in accordance with the law.

That commission was formed under a presidential ordinance on April 3, 2015, after months of tug-of-war between the PTI and the PML-N, during which it had recorded testimonies of 69 witnesses, including politicians, government and judicial officers, and journalists.

Now, in the fresh petition, PTI emphasised that the courts in Pakistan cannot turn a blind eye to the allegedly obvious and apparent acts of high-handedness, cruelty, oppression, suppression, and violation of fundamental rights on the part of the caretaker government and the “illegitimately” installed governments at the federal and provincial levels.

The Supreme Court cannot be a spectator in the face of the violation of constitutional provisions and the failure to enforce fundamental rights under the Constitution, the petition pleaded.

The petition emphasises that there was abundant evidence in the form of video clips, media reports, and press statements by local and international media — more than sufficient — to order a judicial probe into the electoral fraud allegedly by ECP to benefit the political parties in power, the petition argued.

It claims that right under the chief election commissioner’s nose, results of hundreds of constituencies were compiled and announced after allegedly being changed under coercion and manipulation and in collusion with the caretaker governments, police officials, and law enforcement agencies.

In several constituencies Form 47 was issued by the returning officer in the most dubious manner, not based upon Form 45, which provided the basis for consolidation of results as required by law and the constitution, the petition alleged.

Published in Dawn, March 21st, 2024