Barrister Gohar, PTI Chairman. Photo: File
ISLAMABAD:
The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has refused to recognize lawyer Gohar Ali Khan as chairman of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI).
The poll monitoring body, in response to Gohar’s earlier letter, said that on November 13, it had sought recognition of the independent senators’ affiliation with the PTI.
The commission said the PTI intra-party elections case was still pending and the party had obtained a stay order from the Lahore High Court (LHC). According to the ECP, he cannot be recognized as PTI chairman and does not hold any legal authority in this regard.
On January 13, 2024, a three-member bench of the SC upheld the December 22, 2023 order of the ECP declaring the PTI intra-party polls null and void.
Later, PTI candidates had to contest the general elections on February 8, 2024 as independents.
Eighty of these independent candidates reached the National Assembly and later joined the SIC with the apparent aim of demanding seats reserved for women and minorities. The ECP, however, refused to allocate the seats to the party, a decision which the SIC challenged in the Supreme Court.
On July 12, 2024, the full apex court, by a majority of eight to five, resurrected the PTI as a parliamentary party, noting that 39 of the legislators who had submitted PTI affiliation certificates along with their nomination papers were already PTI legislators.
The top court ruled that the remaining 41 MPs who had not submitted their affiliation certificates at the time of submitting nominations can now do so within 15 days.
The ruling coalition then filed a review petition against the supreme court’s decision, which the Constitutional Court took up in May.
