SC upholds tribunal’s order for vote recount in PB-45

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court has dismissed an appeal challenging the election tribunal’s decision to conduct a recount of votes at 15 polling stations in the Balochistan Assembly constituency PB-45, Quetta.

A three-member bench of the apex court, headed by Justice Shahid Waheed and comprising Justice Irfan Saadat Khan and Justice Aqeel Abbasi, delivered the judgment in the appeal filed by Mir Ali Madad Jatak, the returning candidate of the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) from PB-45. The court upheld the election tribunal’s decision, affirming the need for a recount at the specified polling stations. On November 20, 2024, the bench had reserved its verdict while dismissing Jatak’s appeal.

In the 25-page judgment authored by Justice Aqeel Ahmed Abbasi, the court observed that under the Election Act, election tribunals possess the authority of a civil court. The tribunal can exercise its powers to record statements under the law of evidence when adjudicating election disputes. The judgment revealed that through Form 45, an increase of 4,912 votes was made in favour of the petitioner, while the vote count for his opponent, Mir Muhammad Usman, remained unchanged at 1,623. “As per the record of the election tribunal, fraud was committed in Form 45 across 15 polling stations in the constituency,” the judgment stated.

The court upheld the election tribunal’s ruling and dismissed the appeal filed by Mir Ali Madad Jatak.