Alleged poll rigging: IK seeks early hearing of judicial commission formation petition

ISLAMABAD: Former prime minister Imran Khan has prayed to the Supreme Court to hear his petition to form a judicial commission to probe alleged rigging and irregularities in general elections 2024, preferably on June 25.

The founder of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) on Friday filed an application for an early hearing of his petition through his counsel Hamid Khan. Imran in March this year had filed the petition under Article 184 (3) of the constitution citing Federation through the Ministry of Law and Justice, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), Pakistan Peoples Party Parliamentarians (PPPP) and Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) as respondents.

He stated the constitution casts duty upon the ECP to hold free, fair and transparent elections, but it failed to perform its duties as given in Articles 218 and 219.

The counsel said that the elections having been rigged and manipulated, denying political justice to the people of Pakistan those genuinely elected, and in order to give powers to the “true public representatives” it needs to be investigated by appointing a judicial commission consisting of a serving Supreme Court judge.

He mentioned that during the hearing of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) amendments case, on 31 May 2024, he appeared before the court from Adiala Jail via video link and requested for fixation of two petitions related to violation of human rights, as well as, alleged massive rigging during the February 8 elections; whereupon Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa inquired about his legal representation. He replied that Hamid Khan was his counsel. The chief justice then said that Hamid Khan was a senior counsel and knew how to fix the matter, hence this application for an early hearing.

An important constitutional question of great public importance is involved, but the case has not been fixed since its filing, said the petitioner, praying that the case be fixed on 25-06-24.

Imran in his petition also prayed: “All consequential acts of the forming governments at the federal and Punjab levels be immediately suspended until the commission makes the probe public.” It demanded orders, directions, and relief be granted in the “best interest of the nation, its electoral mandate, and Constitutional dispensation”.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2024