No institution can interfere in ECP’s domain: CJP

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court has adjourned the hearing in the PTI’s electoral symbol bat case till Saturday (tomorrow).

During the hearing on the Election Commission of Pakistan’s appeal challenging the Peshawar High Court verdict regarding the PTI’s electoral symbol, Chief Justice of Pakistan Justice Qazi Faez Isa remarked that the election commission is a constitutional institution and no institution can interfere in its work.

A three-member bench of the Supreme Court headed by the Chief Justice of Pakistan heard the case regarding the PTI’s bat symbol.

At the outset of the hearing, the Chief Justice of Pakistan inquired whether the detailed verdict of the Peshawar High Court had been released.

PTI lawyer Hamid Khan said that the detailed verdict had not yet come.

The lawyer of the Election Commission, Makhdoom Ali Khan, read out and narrated the Peshawar High Court’s decision to return the bat symbol in the Supreme Court.

Lawyer Hamid Khan said that he should be given time till Monday to prepare, on which the Chief Justice of Pakistan said that if the case has to be adjourned for three days, then the Peshawar High Court’s decision will have to be suspended, we are ready to work tomorrow and the day after, we can hear the election cases by sacrificing the holidays of Saturday and Sunday.

Justice Qazi Faez Isa said that they only want the elections to be held on time and in accordance with the law, knowing that there is less time left in the elections.

The Chief Justice of Pakistan said that he had not read the case file either, and asked Hamid Khan when will he be ready for the case?

The lawyer of the Election Commission, Makhdoom Ali Khan, said that tomorrow the candidates have to be allotted the electoral symbols, while Hamid Khan said that in this case, give me time till tomorrow to prepare, the Election Commission should tell how they can file an appeal? The Election Commission is a partial judicial forum, they do not have the right to sue.

The Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa remarked that the Election Commission is also a constitutional institution, if you object to the admissibility of the Election Commission’s appeal, then the same question will come to you, you will also be asked how did you go to the Peshawar High Court?

The lawyer of the Election Commission said that the PTI’s previous party elections were held in 2017, according to the party constitution, the PTI was bound to hold party elections in 2022, the Election Commission issued a notice to the PTI for not holding elections according to the party constitution.

PTI gets to ‘Bat’

Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar asked whether the PTI’s constitution has the procedure for the appointment of the election commissioner? The lawyer of the Election Commission said that first Jamal Ansari and then Niazullah Niazi became the PTI’s chief election commissioner.

The chief justice asked who were the other members of the election commission (PTI) according to the party constitution? The lawyer Makhdoom Ali Khan said that there was no other member appointed besides the chief election commissioner.

Justice Qazi Faez Isa asked Hamid Khan if this was true? The PTI’s lawyer said that the Election Commission’s lawyer’s statement was not correct. The Chief Justice asked where are the documents of the appointment of the Election Commission members? Hamid Khan said that he had asked for time to prepare for the case.

Hamid Khan said that he would also argue on the appeal of the Election Commission being inadmissible and having no right to sue, it would be appropriate to first hear the point of having the right to sue and being admissible, a party that is affected by the order of the Election Commission has the right to sue.

The Chief Justice of Pakistan said that the Election Commission is a constitutional institution, here the collector comes to defend his orders, there is no objection to that, you have the right to object, so far it has been understood from the decision of the Election Commission that the party did not hold the election under its own constitution, Hamid Khan, you must submit the documents, if you want the court to get the record of the Election Commission, we will also get that.

Hamid Khan said that the court had stopped the institutions from appealing against their decisions in the cases of the Competitive Commission and the Federal Ombudsman, on which the Chief Justice asked whether these decisions could apply to the constitutional institutions? The institutions established under the law and the constitution cannot be the same, the Election Commission made under the constitution will use its powers according to the constitution, show any decision where the constitutional institutions were stopped from appealing?

The PTI’s lawyer Hamid Khan said that the Election Commission’s reliance is not on the constitution but on the Election Act, on which Justice Qazi Faez Isa said that if we accept your argument, it would be a matter of abolishing the constitutional institutions, the Supreme Court will not interfere in the work of the Election Commission. He said that once the former Chief Justice Jawad S Khawaja started advancing the date of the local body elections, I told Justice Jawad S Khawaja that I would write a dissenting note. I had clearly said that holding elections is the work of the Election Commission. The former Chief Justice Jawad S Khawaja agreed with me.

The Chief Justice of Pakistan said that the Election Commission is a constitutional institution, no institution can interfere in its work, if the Election Commission does any unconstitutional work, then the matter can be seen, let the lawyer of the Election Commission inform the facts of the case, where is the document of the appointment of the party election commission? On which Hamid Khan said that if the court had issued a formal notice, he would have brought the documents today.

Justice Qazi Faez Isa said that the PTI itself had gone to the High Court, they should not have been surprised by the filing of the appeal, we will get the complete record of the proceedings from the Election Commission, why were these different people made parties?

The lawyer of the Election Commission, Makhdoom Ali Khan, said that those who challenged the PTI intra-party election were made parties, Akbar S Babar is the founding member and part of the PTI.

Hamid Khan said that Akbar S Babar is not a member of the PTI, on which Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar asked Akbar S Babar’s lawyer how Akbar S Babar is a member of the Tehreek-e-Insaf? Akbar S Babar’s lawyer said that the PTI had not given any written reply to our complaint.

The Chief Justice said that Akbar S Babar himself has written that he is the founding member of the PTI, while Hamid Khan said that Akbar S Babar is no longer a member of the PTI, the party’s statement takes precedence over the statement of any individual person, the Chief Justice said to Hamid Khan while talking to him, do not be emotional, show the document of Akbar S Babar not being a member.

Hamid Khan said that Akbar S Babar was a founding member, on which Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar said that a founding member cannot be terminated in my opinion, if he is expelled, show the letter, while the Chief Justice asked whether you are also a founding member of the PTI? On which Hamid Khan said that I am also a founding member of the PTI, the founding members were 8 to 12, there will be a difference between the founding members and those who came later.

The lawyer of the Election Commission, Makhdoom Ali Khan, said in his arguments that the Election Commission had given a 64-page verdict in the intra-party election case, the Election Commission’s Political Finance Wing had also raised questions on the intra-party elections, according to the Election Commission, the PTI’s elections were not in accordance with the law, the PTI’s elections were secret and the documents presented were not in accordance with the facts.

The Chief Justice inquired whether the PTI’s secretary general was Asad Umar before, did he leave the party? Is there any resignation of Asad Umar? Was he expelled from the PTI?

The lawyer of the Election Commission said that they had no information about Asad Umar, Omar Ayub had signed the notification regarding the PTI’s elections, now Omar Ayub is the secretary general of the PTI, it is not known how Omar Ayub became the secretary general of the PTI.

Justice Qazi Faez Isa said that it means that the PTI had violated its constitution, where did the intra-party elections take place, in a hotel or a cricket ground? On which the lawyer Makhdoom Ali Khan said that the Election Commission was not told where the intra-party elections were held.

The lawyer of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf said that the elections took place in Ganogauri, on which Justice Masrat Hilali asked why the intra-party elections were held in this small village, while the Chief Justice asked whether there was any notification that where the intra-party elections took place, were the workers informed or not?

The Chief Justice of Pakistan said that if there was no notification regarding the intra-party elections, how would the workers know where the voting was, the question would arise that how would the members know where to go and cast their vote, it would have been told that where the intra-party elections were taking place, so that security arrangements could be made.

Makhdoom Ali Khan said that the Election Commission had asked the PTI in writing where they were holding the elections, so that arrangements could be made, on which the Chief Justice asked whether the PTI had given an answer to the Election Commission? The lawyer said that the PTI had not given any answer to the Election Commission.

The lawyer of the Tehreek-e-Insaf said that they should be allowed to play the videos, they want to show the evidence to the court, on which Justice Qazi Faez Isa said that this is a court of law, show any document if you have, we will not allow to play the videos, how many members are there in your party?

Chief Justice snubs PTI leader Niazullah Niazi

Niazullah Niazi said that PTI has more than 8 lakh registered members, voting was done, watch the videos, the Chief Justice said that you are not a lawyer today, you are a party, do you have any manners that you ask for permission and talk in the presence of senior lawyers, your party’s lawyers are present, you sit down.

Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa inquired when did the PTI have elections before December 2? The lawyer of the Election Commission said that the last elections of the PTI were in June 2017, Justice Qazi Faez Isa said that they say that the last elections were in December, tell from the documents, they say that the elections of June 8, 2022 were correct, which the Election Commission is denying.

Makhdoom Ali Khan said that the record of the elections of June 8, 2022 was not presented before the court because they had accepted the decision of the re-election, on which the Chief Justice of Pakistan asked whether the same people who had the intra-party elections on June 8, 2022 were also in the recent elections?

The lawyer of the PTI Hamid Khan said that if the court gives time, they will answer all the questions, the Chief Justice said that they will give you full time but answer the questions that are arising along with, you mean that you challenged the decision of the Election Commission and also held the elections, Hamid Khan, tell me what is this logic?

Justice Qazi Faez Isa while talking to Hamid Khan said that the case of the PTI’s intra-party elections is pending in the High Court, go and tell the High Court that you are withdrawing the petition or not, the PTI challenged the order of the Election Commission and also held the intra-party elections, if they had to act on the order of the Election Commission, they would have withdrawn the petition from the Lahore High Court, the PTI kept the petition alive in the Lahore High Court, why did you go to the Peshawar High Court, how can another High Court hear the case when there was a case pending in one High Court, Barrister Gohar said in reply that the PTI’s elections took place in Peshawar, so they filed a case there, our workers were being picked up from Islamabad and different places.

Barrister Gohar Ali Khan said that they did not go to the Peshawar High Court for shopping, the Chief Justice of Pakistan said that you used this word, not me, your own Election Commission said that the elections took place in Chamkani, not in Peshawar, you kept the petition pending in the Lahore High Court and reached Peshawar, I did not understand, you challenged the decision of the Election Commission in the Lahore High Court where there was already a petition, you should have waited for the decision in the Lahore High Court, instead you went to the Peshawar High Court, did the Lahore High Court also not like the PTI, sometimes you go to the Lahore High Court, sometimes you go to Peshawar.

The Chief Justice of Pakistan said that I did not want to use the word forum shopping, the word forum shopping is used when you do not get relief from one place and run to another place, this way the system will be ruined.

The lawyer Hamid Khan said that the case is pending before you that the level playing field is not being given nor security is being provided, Peshawar was the only place where there was security and the decision was made to hold the elections, when the elections took place in Peshawar, the challenge was also in the Peshawar High Court.

The Chief Justice of the Supreme Court said that you went to the Lahore High Court, a full court was formed on your petition, if the ballot becomes the electoral symbol, the PTI should get it, we advanced the judicial council meeting for the PTI’s case, the PTI came to hold the elections, we gave the date of the elections in 12 days, when the date of the elections was given, Ali Zafar, Attorney General and Advocate Generals were all happy, you brought a petition of contempt of court against the Election Commission, we immediately asked for an answer from the Election Commission, you went to the Lahore High Court, there a larger bench was made, you left the Lahore High Court and went to Peshawar, relief was obtained, now what else do you want to do?

Justice Qazi Faez Isa said that maybe people do not like my way of working, my way of working is that as soon as there is a legal question, I do it immediately.

The Chairman of the PTI Barrister Gohar said that the Election Commission had filed a case to disqualify the Chairman of the PTI from the party office, on which the Chief Justice asked in what capacity are you giving arguments? Barrister Gohar said that I am assisting the court, the Chief Justice said that Hamid Khan is a senior lawyer, let him talk.