PHC dismisses SIC petitions seeking reserved seats in assemblies

PESHAWAR: The Peshawar High Court (PHC) on Thursday dismissed petitions of the Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC) over reserved seats in assemblies, ARY News reported.

A five-member bench of the high court given unanimous decision on the petition as Justice Ishtiaq Ibrahim read the reserved verdict.

Earlier, the high court reserved its decision after the lawyers’ concluded arguments in the case.

Barrister Ali Zafar during the hearing came to rostrum and apologized over being absent in the hearing yesterday.

He said that the PTI’s election symbol ‘bat’ was taken before the election and the candidates have to contest the election as independent.

On a question about the number of the seats in the National Assembly and provincial assemblies. SIC lawyer said that the party have 86 seats in the NA, 90 seats in KP, 107 seats in Punjab, nine seats in Sindh and one member in Balochistan Assembly. “Overall, the SIC have 226 seats in assemblies and it is entitled for 78 reserved seats,” he added.

“The election commission kept us aside and granted reserved seats to remaining political parties,” the lawyer said. “Some political parties requested to the ECP to grant these seats to us, as it was a vacant plot of land and someone come and encroaches it,” SIC consul said.

Ali Zafar quoting Article 17 said that every citizen has right to join or form a party. “If a party formed, it could contest election and form government. We are entitled of all these rights under Article 17,” he said.

Ali Zafar argued that the election commission has been confused over difference between the parliamentary party and political party. “The seats have been reserved for a specific purpose and not for distributing them freely,” he argued.

Justice Shakeel Ahmed said that the law uses the word ‘secure’, you didn’t secure the seats. “Your case of the Sunni Ittehad Council, the PTI joined it, both of them didn’t contest the election. The reserved seats can be secured when the political parties had won the seats,” Justice Syed Arshad Ali said. “You had time after the Supreme Court decision to hold the intra-party election, but you didn’t”.

“We conducted intra-party election, but the election commission has still not accepted it,” Ali Zafar said.

Justice Ijaz Anwar remarked that the law refers words, those who will contest the election will get the seats. “It is not written that a political party sitting outside waiting for independent members to join it.”