The Constitutional Bank of the Supreme Court dismissed on Friday the requests presented by the PTI in the case of the reserved seats, stating that the party will not be eligible for them in the national and provincial assemblies.
An 11 members, headed by Judge Aminuddin Khan, resumed the hearing today. However, Judge Salahuddin Panhwar retired from the bank after an objection of the main lawyer Hamid Khan. The bank previously had 13 members, but Ayesha A. Malik and Judge Aqeel Ahmed Abbasi had declared requests [inadmissible][11] And they were not part of the subsequent procedures, with the main judge of CB noting that they had voluntarily retreated.
Among the remaining 10 members, the review requests were accepted by most of the seven judges, including Judges Aminuddin Khan, Musarrat Hilali, Naeem Akhter Afghan, Shahid Bassan, Muhammad Hashim Khan Kakar, Aamer Farooq and Ali Baqar Najafi. The decision of the Superior Court of Peshawar (PHC) was confirmed, while the Judgment of the Atx Court of July 2024 was annulled. Consequently, the requests of the PTI were dismissed, which makes the part eligible for the 39 reserved seats.
“On the first audience date … they have dismissed all the usual requests for detailed reasons that will be registered later subject to amplification or clarification, as appropriate, for most seven,” Judge Khan said while reading the short order.
“All review requests are allowed. An contested majority sentence of July 12, 2024 is annulled.
The short order of the verdict today, seen by Dawn.comHe pointed out that Judge Salahuddin Panhwar challenged himself, so the bank reconstituted with all available members of the Constitutional Bank.
“Initially, this Constitutional Bank was constituted for the hearing of the review requests mentioned by 13 honorable judges of this court, but two of them, Judge Ayesha to Malik and Judge Aqed Ahmed Abbasi, on the first date of hearing dismissed all the review requests,” said the order.
“For detailed reasons to be registered later, by most seven, all civil review requests are allowed and the judgment of the contested majority dated July 12, 2024 is annulled,” the order is left.
“As a consequence of them, civil appeals number 333 of 2024 and 334 of 2024 presented by the SIC are dismissed and the sentence issued by the Superior Court of Peshawar is restored.”
Judge Jamal Khan Commandkhail partly allowed the review requests and maintained his original order with respect to 39 seats, but reviewed the majority trial to the extent of the remaining 41 seats.
The Court instructed the Pakistan Electoral Commission to examine and consider the applicants for nomination and declaration, as well as any other relevant document, of the 80 candidates returned “by means of NOVO with respect to their affiliation and make the appropriate decision in accordance with the law and the applicable rules for the allocation of reserve seats.”
The ECP has 15 days upon receiving the copy of the short order to carry out the court instructions.
Reacting to the verdict in an X publication, the PTI described the decision “the funeral of constitutional, judicial and justice traditions.”
PHC 2024 decision
In March 2024, the PHC had dismissed the request of the Sunita Ittehad Council that defies the decision of the Pakistan Electoral Commission to reject the assignment of the party of reserved women and minority seats.
In a verdict of 4-1, the electoral guardian dog ruled that the sic had no right to claim the quota for the reserved seats “because they have unpressed legal defects and violation of a mandatory provision of presentation of the list of parties for the reserved seats, which is the requirement of the law.”
The SIC, together with independents supported by PTI who won the elections without its electoral symbol, had presented the petition through its president, Sahibzada Muhammad Hamid Raza, looking for court directives so that the ECP assigned seats reserved to the Council based on its strength in national and provincial assemblies.
The commission had also decided to distribute the seats among other parliamentary parts, with the PML-N and the PPP became great beneficiaries. The decision was challenged by the PTI in the Superior Court.
On July 13, the Apex Court, in a unique majority verdict, declared that the PTI is eligible to receive seats reserved for women and non -Muslims in national and provincial assemblies, giving it a new lease of life in the legislature by declaring that it is a parliamentary part.
However, the ruling was not implemented by the National Assembly, while the Pakistan Electoral Commission (ECP) had raised some objections. Review requests against order SC had been presented by the PML-N, the PPP and the ECP.
Today’s audience
Early in the day, when the court resumed the hearing of the review requests in the case of the reserved seats, Judge Salahuddin Panhwar was challenged from the bank after an objection of the main lawyer Hamid Khan.
More to follow
