LAHORE: The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Friday questioned the jurisdiction of the Lahore High Court (LHC) to hear a petition of PTI founding chairman Imran Khan challenging his five-year disqualification in Toshakhana case and cancellation of PTI’s party polls held last year.

A lawyer of the ECP informed a LHC larger bench that the matter in question is already under hearing in the Islamabad High Court. Therefore, he said, the LHC lacks jurisdiction to hear the case.

Asked by Justice Shams Mahmood Mirza, who heads the bench, Barrister Syed Ali Zafar stated that a request of his client (Imran Khan) to withdraw the petition from the IHC had been rejected.

Justice Shahid Karim, a member of the bench, remarked that it was up to the petitioner to decide whether their case was heard in the high court of Islamabad or Lahore.

The bench instructed the ECP lawyer to present relevant judicial precedents and other documents at the next hearing. It also directed that all relevant decisions should be made part of the record.

In the petitions filed before Feb 8 election, Mr Khan said the ECP, despite his clear explanations for Toshakhana gifts, illegally de-seated him as an MNA from Mianwali’s NA-95 constituency and directed that a complaint be filed against him under the Elections Act 2017.

Alleging malice and ulterior motives, Mr Khan criticised the ECP for instigating baseless legal actions against him under sections 167 and 173 of the Elections Act 2017 before a session court in Islamabad.

He also accused the ECP of issuing another illegal order on Oct 23, directing the PTI to hold party elections in 20 days.

Mr Khan asked the court to set aside his disqualification so that he could contest the elections.

He also challenged the ECP order instructing the PTI to hold fresh intra-party polls.

He asked the LHC to declare that the intra-party elections conducted on June 10, 2022, were valid by the party’s constitution.

Salman Raja plea: Justice Abid Aziz Sheikh of the Lahore High Court on Friday recommended forming a larger bench to hear a petition challenging the appointment of retired judges as election tribunals.

He also issued notices on the petition by PTI Secretary General Salman Akram Raja, who raised legal objections against appointing retired judges as members of the election tribunals.

The judge observed that the petition involves significant legal and constitutional questions, requiring a larger bench to decide it.

He sent the file to the chief justice with a request to constitute a larger bench on the matter.

In his petition, Mr Raja claimed that he had won NA-128 Lahore seat by defeating his opponent Awn Chaudhry of Istehkam-i-Pakistan Party (IPP). However, he alleged that the results were altered fraudulently, and a notification was issued declaring Awn as the winner.

The petitioner stated that, under the Election Act 2017, the election tribunals for hearing electoral disputes were to be formed with sitting judges of the high court.

He accused the ECP of appointing retired judges to election tribunals to secure favourable decisions, labeling the move as malicious and illegal.

He sought a stay on the hearings by the tribunals comprising retired judges and the suspension of the ECP decision to appoint retired judges.

Published in Dawn, November 23th, 2024