ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court on Thursday overturned the Election Commission of Pakistan’s (ECP) decision to suspend the Speaker and reinstated Abdul Khaliq Achakzai as the Speaker of the Balochistan Assembly.
A three-member bench, led by Justice Aminuddin Khan, presided over the hearing. Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar criticized the ECP for focusing solely on 12 polling stations while disregarding others.
Justice Aminuddin observed that the Election Commission failed to conduct a proper inquiry or adhere to established rules. The Director General (DG) Law informed the court that observation was limited to the 12 polling stations with high turnout.
In response, Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar emphasized that the ECP should have investigated the entire constituency thoroughly. He noted that had the Election Commission fulfilled its duties, recourse to the court would have been unnecessary.
The Supreme Court also invalidated the Election Commission’s directive for re-polling at 12 polling stations in PB-51 Chaman.
With the consent of all candidates, the Supreme Court remanded the matter back to the ECP, instructing them to hear all candidates and make a decision within 10 days.
It is noteworthy that the Election Commission had ordered re-polling based on a request from Asghar Khan Achakzai, leading to the withdrawal of the Speaker’s success notification.
Abdul Khaliq Achakzai, a leader of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), contested the Election Commission’s decision in the Supreme Court.
