Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Justice Qazi Faez Isa observed on Friday that the Peshawar High Court’s (PHC) order reinstating the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s (PTI) election symbol ‘bat’ appears to be prima facie flawed.
The chief justice made this observation while leading a three-member bench hearing the Election Commission’s appeal against the Peshawar High Court’s order. Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar and Justice Musarrat Hilali were the other members of the bench.
“The Peshawar High Court did not issue a declaration that the PTI’s intra-party polls were in line with the law. It just ordered that the PTI should be given its election symbol back. The Peshawar High Court’s decision is prima facie flawed,” he remarked.
Justice Isa emphasized the importance of the right to contest elections as a basic right and expressed concern that depriving citizens and political parties of this right could lead to dictatorship at the national and local levels.
The chief justice questioned the ECP counsel, Makhdoom Ali Khan, about whether the electoral body had subjected the PTI to discrimination. He highlighted that the Constitution guarantees fundamental rights to every citizen, including the right to contest elections and vote for any political party of choice.
“In a democracy, it is the right of every citizen to exercise his right of franchise and to vote for his own choice, and at the same time, it is the right of a member of any political party to vote as per his choice,” the CJP remarked.
Justice Isa stressed the significance of democracy as a fundamental right, emphasizing that it should be upheld not only in the country but also within political parties.
The court adjourned the hearing to Saturday after hearing arguments from Makhdoom Ali Khan. The court also requested Additional Attorney General Chaudhry Aamir Rehman to assist on the matter and asked PTI’s counsel Barrister Ali Zafar to join the proceedings in Islamabad.
Meanwhile, the Peshawar High Court issued notices to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) for not uploading the certificate to the PTI on its website, as directed by the court. The PTI had filed a contempt of court petition against the ECP, asserting that the PHC had overturned the ECP’s earlier decision, and the party was entitled to its electoral symbol “bat.” The PHC directed the ECP to submit a reply by January 16.