The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has reserved its verdict on multiple petitions challenging the PTI's intra-party election after hearing arguments from all the parties.
A five-member bench of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), headed by the chief election commissioner, heard multiple petitions to annul the PTI’s recently held intra-party elections. An estranged co-founder of the PTI, Akbar S. Babar, and 13 others have petitioned the commission to declare the PTI’s intra-party polls void.
On December 16, notices were dispatched by the electoral watchdog to PTI’s chief election commissioner and chairman regarding Monday's hearing of the case, indicating the seriousness and focus directed towards addressing the concerns surrounding the intra-party electoral process.
Presenting his arguments, PTI lawyer Barrister Ali Zafar said the ECP ordered the party to hold intra-party polls within 20 days of its order. Therefore, the election was ordered under the party’s 2019 constitution.
When the chief election commissioner said the ECP order was not under discussion, Zafar said they were not challenging the order, adding that when there is an unopposed election, there is no need for voting.
He further said that in the general elections, people are also elected unopposed, adding that this kind of polling is not illegal.
The lawyer argued that the Elections Act and the party constitution do not mention the method of intra-party elections. There was no prohibition if a party conducted an intra-party election. In the PTI’s party constitution, only secret ballot papers were mentioned, he added.
The election commission did not monitor the intra-party elections as a tribunal, he said further, adding that the rules of intra-party elections did not exist in the constitution of any party.
The PTI lawyer said according to the election commission’s orders, a non-party member could not challenge its decisions. A party could expel any member, and if he or she wished to stay, they could go to the trial court, he added.
The lawyer said that according to the Elections Act, office-bearers of a political party are elected under the party’s constitution. All political parties have to complete their electoral college and every political party is bound to conduct its intra-party elections on time, Ali Zafar said.
If a party fails, the election commission can issue a show-cause notice and fine it Rs200,000. “If there is a secret ballot mentioned in the constitution, why open the ballot?” Zafar asked.
According to the Elections Act, the PTI has fulfilled the conditions for getting the election symbol, the lawyer remarked. “It appears from these petitions that the PTI conducted the party elections secretly,” he added.
The news of party elections was broadcast on various news channels, Zafar said, and an ECP member said the venue of the elections was not mentioned in this news.
“Did you already decide that the elections will be held unopposed?” a member asked. The lawyer said it was not like that at all, adding that the news about the party election was also published in various newspapers. “I myself also held a press conference regarding the party elections,” Zafar added.
The lawyer also submitted the records of various newspapers to the ECP. He said the announcement of the election schedule was pasted outside all party offices.
“You conducted the elections in Peshawar,” a member remarked, adding that all the parties held intra-party elections in the same city.
Ali Zafar said PTI was the only party whose details were present online and on a mobile application.
“Now even political meetings are being held on the internet,” remarked the chief election commissioner, at which the entire courtroom erupted in laughter.
The election commission was informed about the intra-party elections, Ali Zafar said. Everything related to the nomination papers was reported in the media. After scrutiny of the nomination papers, it was felt that these elections would go unopposed, he informed the commission.
“We announced the procedure and venue of elections on December 2,” he stressed.
The lawyer said the petitioners did not make any requests to vote in the intra-party election but only applied to contest it. None of the petitioners even submitted nomination papers, he added.
Neither was any application submitted to the election commission for contesting the election, Zafar said, adding that no one else can challenge the intra-party election except a member.
“No one justified that they were not allowed to vote,” Ali Zafar remarked.
Akbar S. Babar filed an application about intra-party elections in all political parties, the PTI lawyer maintained, adding that a petitioner said his membership had been cancelled in back dates, another said he wanted to contest the election of secretary general, but neither he was a member nor did he submit a panel.
“One said the election was not held according to the constitution but did not mention the violation,” Ali Zafar explained, and he sought dismissal of all the petitions against the PTI intra-party election.
Petitioners Akbar S Babar and another demanded a re-poll as soon as possible after declaring the recent intra-party exercise void. A second petitioner's lawyer called it "selection", not election. He said there was no record of his client having been evicted from the party.
