PESHAWAR: The Peshawar High Court (PHC) on Saturday fixed Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s (PTI) plea for the hearing for conducting the 2024 general elections under judicial supervision to ensure fair elections. The development come a day after the Supreme Court suspended the Lahore High Court verdict in a similar case terming as a case of misconduct.
Advocate Muazzam Butt, representing PTI, submitted a revised petition to the high court following the court’s directive to challenge the Election Commission of Pakistan’s (ECP) notification on the appointment of returning officers (ROs) and district returning officers (DROs).
A two-member bench, led by PHC Chief Justice Mohammad Ibrahim Khan and Justice Shakeel Ahmed, presided over the hearing on PTI’s petition on Friday.
During the hearing, provincial Advocate General Amir Javed argued that the initial petition did not challenge the ECP’s notification as it was not issued when the petition was submitted. In response, CJ Khan instructed the PTI lawyer to submit the amended plea.
Chief Justice Mohammad Ibrahim Khan remarked that the administration, currently engaged in issuing directives under the Maintenance of Public Order (MPO) 3, raises doubts about the possibility of free and fair elections. Referring to over 700 MPO-3 orders in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, he urged the submission of a supplementary petition, saying that no delays in the elections would be tolerated.
The discussion also touched on the Lahore High Court’s (LHC) suspension of the ECP’s notification, causing a temporary halt to the training of election officers.
After the submission of the amended plea, the bench scheduled the next hearing for Monday at 2 pm.
It is worth noting that PTI filed a similar petition in the LHC, contesting the appointment of ROs and DROs from the bureaucracy. The LHC’s order suspending the ECP’s notification led to a pause in the election process, but the Supreme Court later ruled that there should be no impediment to holding the polls.
The apex court stated that the LHC bench exceeded its jurisdiction, restricting further hearings on petitions related to the appointment of polling officers. Following the Supreme Court’s decision, the ECP issued the long-awaited polling schedule.
