ISLAMABAD: The implementation of the Supreme Court’s judgement in the reserved seats case on part of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) appears to remain far from materialisation with yet another huddle of the electoral body, held in this context, having remained inconclusive.
The ECP senior management headed by Chief Election Commissioner Sikandar Sultan Raja met again on Tuesday but failed to take a decision on notifying the memberships of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) lawmakers in the National Assembly, in implementation of the top court’s order.
Since 14 September, the ECP has held a series of meetings on the implementation of the SC’s clarification order on the reserved seats.
Since Monday, following the issuance of detailed judgement in the case the Commission has met at least twice but failed to make any headway.
A senior ECP official, wishing to be kept unnamed, said the Commission would officially take a decision after receiving the certified copy of the detailed judgement in the reserved seats case.
Regarding the 14 September clarification order, the official said, the electoral body decided to wait for the detailed judgement in the case that arrived on Monday.
However, a former senior ECP official expressed surprise over the ECP’s unofficial stance. “The detailed judgement has been uploaded on the SC’s official website. It is public document now, which means the detailed judgement can be accessed from the SC website, and no certification is required to ascertain its authenticity,” he said, requesting anonymity.
The apex court, in the detailed judgement in reserved seats case, observed: “The Commission must uphold democratic principles and the integrity of electoral processes by ensuring that elections truly reflect the will of the people, thereby preserving the democratic fabric of the nation. Unfortunately, the circumstances of the present case indicate that the Commission has failed to fulfil this role in the General Elections of 2024.”
It said the “unlawful acts and omissions of the Returning Officers and the Commission, which have caused confusion and prejudice to PTI, its candidates and the electorate who voted for PTI, are numerous…”
The apex court observed that the Commission had earlier “accepted in 2018 a political party, Balochistan Awami Party, which had not contested for general seats, eligible for the allocation of reserved seats.”
In a strong rebuke to the poll body, a four-page clarification order issued by majority judges in the reserved seats case on 14 September noted that putting together the record placed before them, and considering the same in the light of the short order in the reserved seats case, “leaves in little doubt that the clarification sought by the Commission –is nothing more than a contrived device and the adoption of dilatory tactics, adopted to delay, defeat and obstruct implementation of the decision of the court. This cannot be countenanced. Even on the application of elementary principles of law, the application filed by the Commission is misconceived.”
Copyright Business Recorder, 2024
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