PTI seeks notification of five new MPAs

Parliamentary leader, lawmaker file pleas in LHC

LAHORE:

Two petitions filed in Lahore High Court have sought directives to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) for notifying Pakistan Tehree-e-Insaf’s (PTI) five new members of Punjab Assembly after de-seating 25 representatives over voting against party line.

PTI’s MPA Zianab Umair filed a petition through Advocate Azhar Siddique and parliamentary leader Sibtain Khan through Advocate Amir Saeed Rawn.

Advocate Siddique implored in his petition that after a Supreme Court decision the Election Commission had de-seated PTI’s 25 members who had voted for PML-N leader Hamza Shehbaz in the chief minister’s election.

He submitted that following the ECP notification, by-elections would be held on the 20 vacant general seats, while new members would be nominated for the reserved seats.

In a letter to the chief election commissioner, the PTI had proposed five names for nomination to the vacant reserved seats.

The petitioner contended that the ECP had failed to issue notifications regarding the nomination in contravention to the law.

Citing Articles 224, 218 and 65 of the Constitution and the Supreme Court order on a presidential reference, the counsel prayed the court to direct the ECP, its members and CEC to immediately issue the notifications for the five members for the reserve seats as per the provided list.

Counsel Amir Saeed Rawn implored in his petition that after the notification issued by the respondents for the disqualified members, it is the mandatory that the reserved seats for women and non-Muslims in the assembly be filled by the next person from the party list.

He stated that the petitioner had provided the priority list as per Section 104 of the Election Act 2017, in which on reserved seats for women Batool Janjua, Saira Raza and Fouzia Abbas are on next numbers and on minority seats Habkook Gill and Samuel Yaqoob.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 29^th, 2022.