PESHAWAR: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Governor Faisal Karim Kundi arrived at the Governor House in Peshawar Tuesday night and expressed readiness to discharge the constitutional duty.
Kundi had initially refused to accept the resignation of former Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur. Earlier in Karachi, Pakistan Peoples Party Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari instructed Kundi to travel to Peshawar and fulfill his constitutional duties. He also directed Sindh’s Chief Minister to provide his plane for the trip. Speaking in Karachi, Kundi affirmed, “I will perform my constitutional duty and will reach Peshawar tonight.”
A little before that, the Peshawar High Court Chief Justice SM Attique Shah ordered Kundi to administer the oath to newly elected Chief Minister Sohaib Afridi by 4:00 pm on Wednesday.
The court ruled that if the governor failed to do so, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly Speaker Babar Saleem Swati would administer the oath instead. The directive was issued during the hearing of a petition seeking the administration of the oath to the newly elected chief minister. The PHC chief justice heard the case.
During the proceedings, the speaker’s counsel Salman Akram Raja, Additional Attorney General (AAG) Sanaullah and the governor’s counsel Aamir Javed appeared before the court. The chief justice asked the AAG whether the governor had responded to the court’s message. He informed the court that the governor was in Karachi and that a flight to Peshawar was available at 1 pm on Wednesday. The chief justice remarked, “Doesn’t the governor have access to a private jet in such a situation?” The AAG replied that the governor had summoned Ali Amin Gandapur at 3:00 pm to verify his resignation.
The chief justice inquired whether the governor intended to administer the oath to the new chief minister. The AAG responded that this could be clarified once the governor returned to Peshawar. The governor’s counsel added that the governor would review the matter according to the law after arriving back. The chief justice observed that the speaker had already issued the election schedule for the chief minister, candidates had submitted nomination papers, including those from opposition parties, and the election had been completed.
The governor’s counsel, however, argued that the governor had not yet accepted the resignation of Ali Amin Gandapur and that under the Constitution, the resignation must first be accepted before a new chief minister could be elected. The chief justice noted that Ali Amin Gandapur had himself announced his resignation on the floor of the assembly. “When the former chief minister has publicly resigned and the assembly has elected a new leader, who is running the province in the meantime?” the chief justice questioned.
Petitioner’s counsel Salman Akram Raja read out the transcript of Gandapur’s statement made in the assembly, where he confirmed his resignation and congratulated the new chief minister. The counsel informed the court that the governor had asked the provincial government to send an aircraft so that he could return immediately. The chief justice then directed the Advocate General Shah Faisal Utmankhel (AG) to arrange the aircraft. The AG replied that since there was currently no chief minister, he could not authorize such arrangements.
The PTI’s counsel argued that the Constitution does not require the formal acceptance of a chief minister’s resignation and that once a new chief minister is elected, the oath-taking must not be delayed. He urged the court to exercise its constitutional authority, referring to Article 190(3)(b) of the Indian Constitution, under which the Supreme Court of India had ruled that where no provision for approval exists, a resignation stands effective upon submission.
After hearing the arguments, the court reserved its judgment and later issued a nine-page written verdict. According to the decision, the governor must administer the oath to the newly elected chief minister by 4:00 pm on Wednesday, October 15. If the governor fails to do so, the speaker will administer the oath.
The judgment stated that under Article 255(2) of the Constitution, the chief justice has the authority to nominate any person for administering the oath. The court observed that this order was issued to prevent a constitutional vacuum and to uphold the supremacy of the Constitution.
The verdict noted that former chief minister Ali Amin Gandapur had confirmed his resignation on the assembly floor on October 13, as evidenced by the submitted transcript. It stated that under Article 130(5) of the Constitution, the chief minister’s office stands vacant, and under the law, the newly elected chief minister must take the oath before assuming office.
Meanwhile, Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUIF) also filed a petition in the Peshawar High Court (PHC) challenging the procedure adopted for the election of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s new chief minister, requesting the court to declare the process null and void.
A two-member bench comprising Justice Syed Arshad Ali and Justice Waqar Ahmad heard the case but adjourned proceedings for one day after the petitioner’s counsel failed to appear due to engagement in another bench. The court was hearing a constitutional petition filed by JUIF leader Maulana Lutfur Rehman through Barrister Yasin Raza. The petition named the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa governor, the chief secretary, speaker of the provincial assembly, Chief Minister Sohail Afridi and others as respondents.
According to the petition, the petitioner, a member of the provincial assembly from the opposition, argued that the election of the new chief minister was unconstitutional as the resignation of former Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur had not yet been formally accepted by the governor.
The plea stated that on October 8, Gandapur tendered his resignation on the instructions of PTI founder Imran Khan. However, the governor declared that he had not received the resignation, creating uncertainty and halting the constitutional process for the transfer of executive authority. Later, Gandapur reportedly sent a handwritten resignation to the governor, but on October 12, PTI members announced the election of a new chief minister. “If the governor has not accepted the resignation, how can another person be elected as chief minister?” the petition questioned.
The petition argued that the speaker had no authority to summon the assembly or conduct the chief minister’s election without the governor’s formal approval of the resignation, as required under Article 130(8) of the Constitution.
The petitioner requested the court to declare the summary and process for the chief minister’s election unconstitutional and void. The court will resume hearing the case today.
