PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar. Photo: File
ISLAMABAD:
The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has refused to recognize Barrister Gohar Ali Khan as Chairman of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI).
The poll watchdog, in response to Gohar’s earlier letter, said he had on November 13 sought recognition of the affiliation of independent senators with the PTI.
The commission said the PTI inter-party election case is still pending and the party has obtained a stay order from the Lahore High Court (LHC). According to ECP, he cannot be recognized as PTI chairman and has no legal authority in this regard.
On 13 January 2024, a three-member SC bench upheld the ECP’s 22 December 2023 order declaring PTI’s intra-party polls invalid.
Later, the PTI candidates were to contest the February 8, 2024 general election as independents.
Eighty such independent candidates reached the National Assembly and later joined the SIC in an apparent attempt to demand reserved seats for women and minorities. However, the ECP refused to allot the seats to the party, a decision which the SIC challenged in the Supreme Court.
On 12 July 2024, a full bench of the apex court by a majority of eight to five reinstated PTI as a parliamentary party, noting that 39 of the legislators who had submitted certificates of their affiliation with PTI along with their nomination papers were already PTI legislators.
The Supreme Court ruled that the remaining 41 legislators who had not submitted the affiliation certificates at the time of submission of nomination papers could do so now within a period of 15 days.
The ruling coalition later filed a review petition against the Supreme Court’s decision, which the Constitutional Court took up in May.
