‘Historic verdict' puts PTI into celebratory mode

Imran's party says SC has upheld supremacy of the Constitution

ISLAMABAD:

The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has hailed the Supreme Court of Pakistan’s “historic” verdict which has “buried" the Doctrine of Necessity for good.

The party swung into celebratory mode after a three-judge apex court bench on Tuesday accepted its constitutional petition and ordered the country’s polls supervisory authority – the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) – to hold elections in Punjab on May 14.

Talking to the media, the party’s vice chairman, Shah Mahmood Qureshi, described the day as momentous.

 “Today, the country’s top court has buried the Doctrine of Necessity for good. We are proud that the nation still has people who can deliver verdicts based on the Constitution and conscience,” he said.

He said the apex court has thwarted an attempt by the ruling coalition to trample the Constitution under its feet. “Today, the verdict has drawn a line between the constitutional and democratic forces and unconstitutional and undemocratic forces in the country.”

The PTI senior leader also congratulated the legal fraternity for standing by the Constitution.

Also congratulating the chief election commissioner (CEC), Qureshi said now the ECP is unshackled from the restriction imposed by the government.

He asked the PTI workers and supporters to prepare for elections and to get PTI Chairman Imran Khan elected as the prime minister once again.

Commenting on the verdict, PTI leader Fawad Chaudhry said the entire nation stood by the apex court. “Elections will bring stability to the country,” he said.

Read Punjab polls on May 14 after SC declares ECP decision 'unconstitutional'

He said state institutions are bound to conduct elections within 90 days of the dissolution of an assembly. However, the government is trying to run away from elections.

Chaudhry said all judges of the country agree that elections can be deferred only in case of imposition of martial law. “Today, the armed forces of the country stand behind the SC verdict,” he said.

Taking a dig at Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, who also serves as the foreign minister in the cabinet of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, he said the grandson of PPP founder Zulfikar Ali Bhutto is now siding with people who violate the Constitution. Bhutto, who was executed on April 4, 1979, is regarded as the architect of the country’s 1973 Constitution.

Chaudhry urged Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) supreme leader Nawaz Sharif and PPP Co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari to accept the SC’s decision and hold elections in the country “as only fresh elections can bring stability.”

PTI leader Hammad Azhar said the Supreme Court had upheld the Constitution.

“No other verdict was possible under the law and the Constitution,” he said, adding that political parties do not run away from elections.

Faisal Javed Khan also hailed the “historic” verdict. He said the government is trapped in a blind alley and has no option but to hold elections. He urged the government to dissolve the National Assembly as well within 24 hours.