The government has decided to ban the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) for which it intends to submit a petition before the Supreme Court.
This was announced by Information Minister Attaullah Tarar in a press conference on Monday. The minister said the country had been toyed with a lot and if there has to be any development in the country, Pakistan and the PTI could not co-exist.
"Looking at the evidence, the government will request a ban on the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI)," Tarar declared, adding that the federal government had decided to ban the party and file a petition for it in the Supreme Court.
He cited the foreign funding case, so-called cipher from the US, alleged sabotaging of the previous IMF program, an anti-Pakistan resolution in the American Congress as "clear evidence" for the decision.
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The minister further said the government believed that under Article 17 of the Constitution, it was empowered to ban political parties, adding that looking at the "evidence", the PTI should be banned. "They tried to sabotage the IMF deal," he alleged.
Moreover, he also announced that the government has decided to file a review of the Supreme Court's decision in the reserved seats case. "The Supreme Court granted relief to the PTI that was never sought," the minister claimed.
He said the government reserved the right to file a review appeal against the decision, claiming that the women whose rights had been usurped believed a review should be filed. "It will be asked whether those who submitted affidavits asked for the relief that's been given," he remarked.
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Tarar questioned if it wasn't parliament's authority to interpret and amend the Constitution, adding that the federal government will rely on strong constitutional points in the review petition in the Supreme Court. "There is clear evidence of illegal funding (of the PTI)," Tarar claimed. "The foreign funding case was kept pending for six years; it included Indian funding."
The minister also announced that the former PTI government had dissolved the National Assembly illegally, therefore a reference under Article 6 of the Constitution will be filed against former president Arif Alvi, former prime minister Imran Khan and former deputy speaker of the assembly Qasim Suri.
"After the approval of the federal cabinet, the reference will be sent to the Supreme Court," he maintained.
