” Stay on PTI reserve seats plea extended till March 13 ” | GNN INFO

The Peshawar High Court (PHC) extended on Thursday the stay on the oath-taking of National Assembly reserve seats until March 13.

A five-member larger bench of the provincial high court, headed by Justice Ishtiaq Ibrahim, heard the petition filed by the PTI-backed Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC).

PTI lawyer Babar Awan informing the court informed the court about the presidential elections scheduled for March 9 and argued that a party with 93 seats in the lower house was not awarded its due share of reserve seats, while other parties with just a seat each were allotted two reserve seats. 

Awan said the electoral watchdog “gifted” the reserve seats to other parties. 

Read: Reserved seats: PTI announces protest against ECP on Sunday

Additional Attorney General Sanaullah sought time for the preparation of arguments in the case and informed the court that the attorney general was busy with another case being heard in the Supreme Court.

The judge summoned AGP at the next hearing and extended the stay on the PTI petition till March 13.

Case referred to larger bench

Yesterday, a two-member bench of PHC restrained the lawmakers from taking oath for a day and referred the case to the PHC chief justice for the formation of a larger bench.

The bench noted that a larger bench will have to determine whether the PHC has jurisdiction to adjudicate the matter and if the petitioner (PTI) has locus standi to file the petition.

During the hearing, Justice Ibrahim inquired whether this case is limited to the K-P or extends to the entire country. The PTI’s lawyer, Qazi Anwar, stated that the ECP made a uniform decision on seats in the National Assembly and provincial assemblies.

“Our reserved seats cannot be constitutionally or legally divided among other parties. We request the court to prevent those who will take oath on those reserved seats,” he said.

SIC not entitled to reserve seats

The ECP had declined to allocate reserved seats to the SIC because it had not submitted a “priority list” for these seats prior to the February 8 general elections.

In its written order, the ECP stated that the SIC was not entitled to claim quotas for reserved seats for women and non-Muslims “due to non-curable legal defects and violation of the mandatory provision of submission of a priority list for reserved seats, which is a requirement of the law.”

PTI moves PHC against ECP order

The PTI subsequently approached the PHC against the order. In its petition, the PTI argued that the ECP allocated its reserved seats to other parties in violation of Article 51(6) of the Constitution, read with Section 104 of the Elections Act, 2017, and Rules 92 and 94 of the Election Rules, 2017.