PHC’s Abbottabad bench admits petition

Peshawar High Court issues notice to PTI chairman, ECP

ABBOTTABAD: A petition challenging the intra-party elections of the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has been admitted by the court while notices have been issued to the respondents.

A two-member bench of the Peshawar High Court (PHC) Abbottabad circuit bench, comprising Justice Shakil Ahmed and Justice Ahmed Ali, heard initial arguments from the petitioner, local PTI leader Ibrar Saeed.

Saeed, through his counsel Kiran Ayub Tanoli, argued that a criterion has been for the election of any political party’s governing body in the Election Act 2017 and the Political Party’s Order 2002. Moreover, he pointed out that PTI’s constitution states that office bearers shall be elected by members of the primary organisations.

Tanoli went on to claim that the executive committee of the party in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) was notified against the provisions of the law. Moreover, Tanoli in her arguments stated that the intra-party selection of PTIs candidates was conducted without any election as required under section 208 of Election Act 2017 and also against Section 11 of the Political Party Order 2002.

The court accepted the write petition and issued notices to the PTI chairman and Election of Commission of Pakistan to file their para wise comments within a fortnight.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 22^nd, 2020.