ISLAMABAD: The number of PTI lawmakers in four assemblies now becomes 132— after the electoral entity, Monday, notified the memberships of 93 more PTI legislators in the three provincial assembles, barring Balochistan, in pursuance of the Supreme Court’s reserved seats order.
As many as 58 lawmakers of Punjab Assembly, 29 lawmakers of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly and six lawmakers of Sindh Assembly have been notified as PTI returned candidates in three separate notifications issued by ECP Additional Director General (Elections) Syed Nadeem Haider.
Earlier, Wednesday, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) notified 39 Members National Assembly (MNAs) as Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) lawmakers.
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Excluding the reserved seats, a total of 80 seats would to PTI in NA, 104 seats in PA, 93 seats in KPA and six seats in SA (notified on Monday) —283 seats in total— in pursuance of the apex court’s decision.
However, the ECP has only partially implemented the top court’s order by notifying 132 or less than even half of 283 legislators.
A senior ECP official, requesting anonymity, said the remaining lawmakers were not notified since the commission had moved the top court, last week, to determine the fate of 41 MNAs who had not declared their affiliation with PTI in their related electoral forms for February 8 general elections. The ECP would proceed regarding the provincial lawmakers in the light of the apex court’s direction on 41 MNAs, the source said.
The PTI would get at least 22 reserved seats in NA, 27 in PA, 25 in KPA and three seats in SA once the SC order on reserved seats is fully implemented.
This would increase PTI’s strength to at least 102 seats in NA, 131 seats in PA, 118 seats in KPA and nine seats in SA—implying that Imran Khan’s political party will have 360 seats in the four assemblies, excluding the Balochistan Assembly, where it has no seat.
On July 12, in its landmark verdict in the reserved seats case, the apex court decided in PTI’s favour, declaring it eligible for reserved seats in the assemblies.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2024