PHC rules reserved seats allocation in KP Assembly null and void

PESHAWAR: The Peshawar High Court on Tuesday declared the Election Commission of Pakistan’s (ECP) notifications regarding reserved seats allocation in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa null and void, ARY News reported.

Hearing a plea filed by the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), the PHC bench directed the ECP to reassess the allocation of the specially designated seats for minorities and women.

The court also directed the election watchdog to hold consultations with all candidates and political parties within 10 days to determine the new allocation.

The court issued a two-page reserved decision, nullifying the ECP’s notifications dated March 4 and March 26, 2024.

The PML-N had challenged the allocation of the seats for women and minorities in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, maintaining an ‘inequitable’ allocation of the seats by the ECP.

Submitted through Barrister Saqib Raza, the PML-N’s petition asserted that Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (F) was allocated 10 reserved seats based on its seven general seats.

Read More: ECP issues notification for reserved seats restoration

The petition read that the PML-N also secured seven general seats in the KP Assembly yet it was allocated only seven reserved seats for an identical number of general seats as JUI-F.

The party maintained that it originally won six general seats in the province, with one independent joining within three days of the election—totaling seven.

The petitioner added that the ECP allocated reserved seats solely in proportion to six general seats, which the petitioner argued ‘unfair’.

The PML-N requested the court to prevent the newly notified members on reserved seats from taking their oath pending a final ruling.

The party also requested the PHC to invalidate the ECP’s notification on reserved seat distribution and direct the election watchdog to adjust the allocations.

Allocation of reserves seats in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly

The Maulana Fazlur Rehman-led party, JUI-F, has secured total 10 seats—eight for women and two for minorities—in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly.

The PML-N has secured six seats for women and one for minorities.

The PPP has been allocated five seats for women one for minorities while Awami National Party (ANP) and PTI-Parliamentarians have each secured one reserved seat for women.