Reserved seats: PTI moves SC after NA speaker's letter to ECP

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) on Saturday approached the Supreme Court (SC), requesting it to restrain the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) from allocating reserved seats to any other political party, ARY News reported.

PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan filed a plea through Aziz Karamat Bhandari after National Assembly Speaker Sardar Ayaz Sadiq wrote a letter to the ECP.

Sardar Ayaz Sadiq through his letter asked the ECP not to allocate reserved seats to the, maintaining that the Supreme Court’s (SC) ruling is now “incapable of implementation” after the amendments to the Election Act 2017.

Following the letter, the PTI moved the apex court and sought its clarification on the letter written by the NA speaker National Assembly Speaker Ayaz Sadiq and Punjab Assembly’s custodian Malik Muhammad Ahmad Khan to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on the matter of reserved seats.

In the fresh plea, PTI’s Barrister Gohar argued that the NA speaker’s letter does not set out the correct constitutional and legal position and has no legal effect on the SC’s 12 July order that declared the party eligible for reserved seats.

“ECP is bound to implement the short order in letter and spirit,” the petition read.

The court was requested to restrain the ECP from allocating the subject reserved seats to any other party till the matter is decided.

NA Speaker’s letter

In a letter written to the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC), Sardar Ayaz Sadiq said that the SC judgment was rendered based on the law before the enactment of the amendment in the Election Act 2017.

“In effect, the SC judgment has allowed a returned candidate to switch political parties,” the NA speaker said in a letter adding that the ruling cannot be implemented after the amendments to the Elections Act 2017 .

“In view of this backdrop, it is stated that independent returned candidates who have already given a joining to a political party cannot be allowed to switch parties in terms of the Amended Election Act which has a paramount and overriding effect,” the NA speaker said.

NA Speaker Sardar Ayaz Sadiq maintained the amendment in the Elections Act 2017 reads that the declaration, consent or affidavit, by whatever name called, of an independent returned candidate once given for joining a political party shall be irrevocable and cannot be substituted or withdrawn.

“The said judgment is now incapable of implementation,” he added.