Islamabad: Pakistan’s top judge on Monday said he was puzzled why jailed former prime minister Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf committed political “suicide” when it decided to merge with the Sunni Ittehad Council ahead of the February 8 general elections.
Chief Justice of Pakistan Qazi Faez Isa made the remarks as the Supreme Court resumed hearing on a petition filed by the Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC), which became prominent after PTI-supported winning candidates joined it, challenging the Peshawar High Court’s verdict denying reserved seats for women and minorities in the national and provincial assemblies.
“Why did the independent candidates leave PTI when it is a political party? Why did you commit suicide by joining another party which goes against your arguments?” the chief justice, who headed a 13-member bench, asked.
He said that had the independent candidates stayed with the PTI, there would have been no problem today.
There are 70 reserved seats in the National Assembly and another 156 in the four provincial assemblies and the reserved seats are allotted to the winning parties based on proportional representations in the respective assemblies.
Khan’s party joined hands with the SIC ahead of the February 8 general elections to contest the polls after the Election Commission stripped the PTI of its electoral symbol, a decision upheld by the top court.
In a 4-1 verdict in March, the Election Commission ruled that SIC could not claim reserved seats due to significant legal flaws and failure to submit a mandatory party list for such seats.
The party had then approached the PHC, which upheld the electoral body’s decision.
In April, SIC moved the apex court seeking to set aside the PHC verdict and the allocation of 67 women and 11 minority seats in the assemblies.
On May 6, a three-member SC bench suspended the PHC verdict and referred the matter to the judges’ committee for the formation of a larger bench since the matter required constitutional interpretation.
On Saturday, the election commission told the apex court that the SIC does not qualify for reserved seats as the political party doesn’t allow non-Muslims to be a part of it.
The ECP also informed the top court that the reserved seats cannot be allotted to the SIC as the party failed to submit a timely priority list for reserved seats as required by the election programme.
During Monday’s hearing, which was streamed live, SIC lawyer Faisal Siddiqui argued in favour of the main plea to award reserved seats to the party and the judges passed different remarks, which are of no legal value but helped to understand the thought process of the panel.
The chief justice said that it would have been better if the candidates had joined the PTI which was still a legal political entity. “In my view, your case would have been stronger if you had joined PTI after the elections. If those controlling the Sunni Ittehad Council change their mind tomorrow, you will be left with nothing,” he told the SIC lawyer.
The chief justice also clarified that the court would strictly follow the constitution while giving its judgment on the issue of allocation of reserved seats. “The court is bound by the words of the Constitution, not by interpretations of the Election Commission or yours,” he said.
Other judges also passed different remarks but it was difficult to judge how their words would impinge on the final judgment.
After the hearing which went on till evening, the court adjourned the hearing until 9:30 am tomorrow.
The final ruling by the top court in the case would decide the fate of those 77 reserved seats. Though it may not change the current power structure, the changes in the overall number game in the assemblies may impact the law-making in the country.
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