ISLAMABAD: The PTI lawyer said that the Election Commission of Pakistan could seize funds if the charge of forbidden funding was proved against a party but it was not authorized to dissolve the guilty party.
A three-member bench of the Election Commission of Pakistan headed by Chief Election Commissioner Sikandar Sultan Raja heard the forbidden foreign funding case against Pakistan Teheek-i-Insaf on Tuesday.
During the hearing, PTI lawyer Anwar Mansoor presented his arguments on the scrutiny committee report.
He said that the committee condoned the authenticity of the evidence being brought forward by the petitioner. He said the scrutiny committee utterly failed in this regard. He prayed to the commission to look into the credibility and authenticity of the evidence that was presented.
The PTI lawyer rued that the impression was being created that the PTI was a party which relied on foreign funding and that the funding should be called forbidden funding, and not just the foreign funding.
An ECP member inquired if funding came from a citizen of a foreign country, should it be regarded as forbidden?
Mr Mansoor contended if funding was secured in order to damage the sovereignty and security of the state then the Supreme Court would decide about the matter. The election commission is only authorized to see whether the forbidden funding was accepted or not by a certain party, the lawyer said adding that the commission could not go beyond that.
The PTI lawyer further argued that if the charge of forbidden funding was proved, then the commission could seize it, but it did not have the jurisdiction to dissolve the party which accepted the forbidden funding.
On the other hand, Akbar S Babar while talking to media outside the office of election commission said that PTI Chief Imran Khan regarded himself above the law. “Imran talks about the hereafter, but will he mind to improve his demeanor,” Babar wondered.
