ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) filed a petition in the Supreme Court on Wednesday, contesting the Election Act 2017 amendments that were passed by the Senate and National Assembly on Tuesday. The petition aims to “circumvent” the apex court’s July 12 ruling on the reserved seats issue.
PTI Chairman Gohar Khan’s attorney, Barrister Salman Akram Raja, submitted a motion under Article 184(3) of the Constitution requesting that the Elections (Second Amendment) Bill, 2024 be ruled “null and void” by the highest court.
The bill, which was introduced by Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) politician Bilal Azhar Kiyani last month, easily passed both the NA and the Senate despite fierce opposition from the opposing benches.The PTI was very upset about this move because, once the president signs it into law, it will essentially “reverse” the party founded by Imran Khan’s ascent to power in the assemblies. This is because the bill forbids independent candidates from later changing their party affiliation from the one they initially stated in their affidavits.
Following the Supreme Court’s declaration last month that the PTI was qualified for reserved seats, the Election Commission of Pakistan notified up to ninety-three parliamentarians from three provincial legislatures that they were PTI members.
