IHC suspends order to conclude PTI foreign funding case in 30 days

The Islamabad High Court (IHC) suspended on Monday an earlier decision directing the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) to conclude a case against the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) for being foreign funded within 30 days, Aaj News reported.

In November 2014, Akbar Sher Babar, one of the founding members of PTI, accused the party of being foreign funded and sought action against it.

ECP decides to hear foreign funding case on daily basis

Last week, PTI's Asad Umar filed an intra-court appeal against an earlier decision of the IHC single bench, wherein Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kayani had issued a verdict upholding the ECP’s decision to give access to the case’s record to Babar and not to remove him from proceedings.

PTI challenges IHC’s order in foreign funding case

Kayani had dismissed PTI's earlier petition to keep its funding confidential and directed the ECP to decide the case within a "period of next 30 days by all means, after hearing the parties in accordance with law”.

"The claim submitted by the petitioner (PTI) is not maintainable as petitioner itself is not able to demonstrate any of his legitimate rights when [it] itself is in agreement that respondent No 2 (Babar) can participate in the proceedings to the extent of information which he has provided to the scrutiny committee or the ECP, therefore, this petition is not based upon bona fide, rather filed with specific motive, just to stop respondent No 2 Akbar Sher Babar to participate in the proceedings, which has already been settled by this court in the previous proceedings," Kayani's order had said.

Now, Chief Justice Athar Minallah and Justice Babar Sattar have heard the PTI's intra-court appeal and suspended Kayani's ruling. The court has issued notices to the ECP, 17 political parties, and PTI's Babar, and wants their responses by the next hearing on May 17.