The Supreme Court of Pakistan released its detailed judgment on Monday regarding the July 12 ruling that recognized Imran Khan’s PTI as a parliamentary party, a decision that dealt a significant blow to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s coalition. The 8-5 majority ruling, authored by Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah, reaffirmed PTI’s eligibility for reserved seats for women and minorities, stating that election authorities had violated both candidate and voter rights by denying recognition to PTI and listing its candidates as independents.
The verdict criticized the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) for engaging in “unlawful acts” that created confusion and undermined electoral integrity, emphasizing the critical role of the judiciary in safeguarding free and fair elections. The court questioned the ECP’s rejection of PTI’s intra-party elections, asserting that this decision compromised voters’ fundamental rights and eroded public trust.
The judgment also expressed concern over the ECP’s failure to fulfill its constitutional role as a “guarantor” of democratic processes, noting that the Commission acted more as a contesting party than an impartial body during the legal proceedings.
In a pointed rebuke, the court expressed disappointment with dissenting Justices Aminuddin Khan and Naeem Akhtar Afghan, who criticized the majority ruling, urging the ECP not to comply with it. The majority concluded that such dissent undermines the integrity of Pakistan’s judicial system.
