Ghosts of an election past

The Supreme Court’s recent decision to admit petitions filed by PTI leaders, including party founder Imran Khan and Sher Afzal Marwat, seeking a judicial commission to probe the alleged rigging in the February 8, 2024 elections is yet another chapter in Pakistan’s long, exhausting saga of electoral controversy. While this move may seem like a step towards accountability, it also signals how unresolved and fractured the post-election landscape remains, nearly a year after the votes were cast. Imran Khan’s petition, filed under Article 184(3) of the constitution, requests not only an impartial judicial commission of sitting Supreme Court judges to audit and examine the electoral process, but also the suspension of the federal and Punjab governments until the commission’s findings are made public. While such drastic relief is unlikely, the very act of the court entertaining the petition shows the seriousness of the allegations as well as the institutional inertia that has followed since.

Indeed, from the tardy pace of election tribunals to the delay in appointing a new Chief Election Commissioner and ECP members, the state has shown little urgency in addressing growing public disillusionment with electoral processes. Between February and April this year, only 37 per cent of the petitions filed against the 2024 elections have been decided, and just 26 per cent of the challenges to National Assembly results have been concluded. Such sluggish adjudication is a blow to democratic accountability and continues to cast a shadow over the current assemblies and government. Compounding the uncertainty is the leadership vacuum within the Election Commission of Pakistan. CEC Sikandar Sultan Raja’s term ended in January, but no visible effort has been made to appoint his successor or replace the two other retired members, despite constitutional provisions and growing political pressure. With no signs of dialogue between the prime minister and the leader of the opposition – an essential step in the appointment process – this inaction threatens to paralyse the electoral body just when institutional credibility is most needed.

These issues go to the heart of our democratic health. Elections in Pakistan have rarely been free of controversy, but the last two – 2018 and 2024 – stand out for the scale and duration of the disputes they have triggered. Ironically, the very parties that demanded electoral justice then now seem reluctant to provide it to their opponents. The PTI’s criticism of Sikandar Sultan Raja echoes the PML-N’s criticisms of Sardar Raza Khan during the 2018 elections. The pattern is unmistakable: parties in power ignore concerns, while those out of power challenge the system – only for roles to reverse in the next cycle. The cost of this continued bickering is immense. It delegitimises governments, weakens institutions, undermines rule of law and saps public trust in democracy. Worse, it creates a toxic political environment where elections are seen less as exercises in representation and more as rigged games with predetermined outcomes. If these trends continue, we risk walking into the 2029 elections with the same unresolved grievances. All major parties must come together to chart out a long-overdue electoral reform agenda – starting with a consensus on appointments to the ECP, revisiting the role of returning officers, improving transparency mechanisms and strengthening the role of election tribunals. The Supreme Court’s involvement may temporarily offer a path forward, but ultimately, electoral integrity cannot be outsourced to the judiciary alone. It must be built collectively through legislation, dialogue and a shared commitment to democratic norms.