SC Declares PTI Eligible for Reserved Seats

APP

Islamabad: The Supreme Court of Pakistan’s 13-member bench has declared Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) eligible for reserved seats for women and minorities in the national and provincial assemblies. 

This ruling nullifies the previous decision by the Peshawar High Court (PHC) and the notifications of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) concerning these reserved seats. The court also affirmed PTI’s status as a political party.

Justice Mansoor Ali Shah announced the 8-5 majority verdict, with Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa heading the bench. The judgment was supported by Justices Syed Mansoor Ali Shah, Athar Minallah, Shahid Waheed, Munib Akhtar, Muhammad Ali Mazhar, Ayesha Malik, Syed Hassan Rizvi, and Irfan Saadat Khan.

The nine-page order stated that the PHC’s judgment dated March 25, 2024, and the ECP’s order from March 1, 2024, were ultra vires the Constitution. The court’s decision also nullified the notifications that had declared certain individuals as returned candidates for the reserved seats for women and minorities from May 6, 2024, onward.

The ruling emphasized that the lack of an election symbol does not affect a political party’s right to participate in elections and field candidates. It was declared that PTI had won general seats in the National and Provincial Assemblies in the 2024 General Elections.

The court ordered that any of the remaining 41 returned candidates out of the 80 may, within 15 working days, file a statement confirming their affiliation with PTI.

 If confirmed by the party, their seats will be deemed secured by PTI. The ECP is to update and post the list of returned candidates on its website within seven days after the last date for filing confirmations.

PTI is to file its lists of candidates for the reserved seats within 15 working days, and the ECP is to comply accordingly. 

The provisions apply similarly to the reserved seats for women and minorities in the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, Punjab, and Sindh Provincial Assemblies. The court stated that any need for clarification or additional orders should be addressed by appropriate applications to the court.