The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) challenged on Friday the Supreme Court’s (SC) detailed verdict issued on September 14 regarding the reserved seats case, Aaj News reported.

Earlier, the commission sought SC’s guidance whether to follow majority judgment or Elections (Second) Amendment Act, 2024, promulgated with retrospective effect, on reserved seats.

In its plea filed on Thursday, the ECP maintained that it had received the National Assembly Speaker Ayaz Sadiq’s letter, which stated that the reserved seats should be allocated to the opposition parties after the amendments to the Election Act.

ECP seeks SC’s guidance on verdict on reserved seats

The electoral watchdog maintained that when it previously sought clarification on the matter, the said law was not in place. It sought the top court’s guidance on whether to follow the parliamentary law or the Supreme Court’s decision.

It states that the commission was willing to comply with Apex Court’s September 14th order; however, doing so would violate the newly enacted parliamentary law.

SC verdict

In its detailed verdict issued on September 23, the SC said that the ECP’s numerous “unlawful acts and omissions” had “caused confusion and prejudice to Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI)”.

The SC said that the judiciary’s role in ensuring electoral integrity and upholding the will of the people is essential for sustaining public trust in the democratic process.

SC also observed that the returning officers (ROs) and the ECP’s numerous “unlawful acts and omissions” caused “confusion and prejudice to PTI, its candidates, and the electorate who voted for PTI”.

“PTI’s nominated candidates were wrongly shown independent candidates in the list of contesting candidates (Form 33) by the returning officers and were also wrongly notified as independent returned candidates in the Section-98 notification by the Commission,” the judgment read.

It further said that ECP “in its role as a guarantor institution and impartial steward, is tasked with ensuring the transparency and fairness of elections to maintain public trust in the electoral system”.

“This is essential for the legitimacy of elected representatives and the stability of the political system. 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,” it added.

“Unfortunately, the circumstances of the present case indicate that the Commission has failed to fulfill this role in the general elections of 2024,” the apex court observed.

Background

On July 12, the SC had declared PTI eligible for seats reserved for women and minorities.

The 8-5 majority July order said that withdrawal of election symbol cannot disqualify a political party from elections.

“The PTI was and is a political party,” the court said.

The judgment further said that the withdrawal of an election symbol cannot disqualify a political party from participating in the elections.