ECP forms election tribunals for Sindh, Balochistan

ISLAMABAD: The Election Commission of Pakistan, through a notification issued on Friday, established four election tribunals for Sindh and three for Balochistan to try and dispose of petitions concerning the general elections.

“In pursuance of the provisions of Section 140 of the Elections Act, 2017, the Honourable Election Commission of Pakistan, on the recommendations of the Honourable Chief Justice of the High Court concerned, has been pleased to appoint, with immediate effect, the following Honourable Judges of the High Courts to act as election tribunals for the general elections of 2024 for the trial and disposal of election petitions about the National Assembly and provincial assembly constituencies for general elections 2024 and subsequent by-elections and jurisdiction mentioned against each tribunal,” the notification states.

According to the notification, for the Revenue Division of Karachi, the tribunal comprising Justice Muhammad Karim Khan Agha and Justice Adnan Iqbal Chaudhry will hear the cases. Similarly, Justice Muhammad Iqbal will hear the election petitions related to the Sukkur and Shaheed Benazirabad divisions, Justice Amjad Ali will hear the election petitions related to the Mirpur Khas and Hyderabad divisions, and Justice Muhammad Saleem will hear the related pleas related to the Larkana division.

In Balochistan, the election tribunal will consist of Abdullah Baloch (tribunal-I), Justice Rozi Khan (tribunal-II), and Justice Muhammad Amir Nawaz Rana (tribunal-III).

Different political parties have expressed concerns regarding the electoral process and alleged rigging and irregularities in the general elections held on February 8. As a result, petitions are being filed against the election results in various constituencies.

Separately, in a statement, the commission’s media wing has said that the public is informed that the Election Commission of Pakistan has only one genuine official Twitter ‘X’ account, which is registered with the title of ‘Grey Tick’. It explained that all other ‘X’ accounts are fake, and the commission has nothing to do with them.