ECP objects to PTI’s third intra-party elections, issues notice for 30th

ISLAMABAD: The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) Wednesday issued a notice to the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) for April 30, raising objections on the recently held intra-party elections.

The ECP has objected to the PTI intra-party elections for the third time since 2022 and a notice has been issued in this regard.

In its notice, the ECP Political Finance Wing directed the PTI to appear before it on April 30. The PTI had submitted details of the intra-party elections, held on March 3, to the ECP last month.

As per the elections, Barrister Gohar Ali Khan was elected chairman and Omar Ayub Khan as secretary general of the party. The ECP, on Dec 22, 2023, had called PTI’s intra-party polls as ‘unconstitutional’ and revoked its claim to its iconic electoral symbol ‘bat’. The reserved verdict was announced a day after the Peshawar High Court (PHC) had directed the ECP to decide the matter in accordance with the law’.

The ECP declared the party’s polls as null and void for the second time in less than a month. The ECP order declared the PTI ineligible to obtain an electoral symbol to contest the February 8, 2024 general election.

In its 11-page order, the ECP had ruled, “It is held that the PTI had not complied with our directions rendered in the order, issued on November 23, 2023, and failed to hold intra-party election in accordance with the PTI prevailing Constitution, 2019 and Elections Act, 2017, and Election Rules, 2017.”

The ECP had rejected the certificate and Form-65 filed by party chairman Gohar Ali Khan and declared the party ineligible to obtain an election symbol under Section 215 of the Elections Act, 2017.