SJC dismisses PTI complaint against ECP officials

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) has dismissed a complaint filed by the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) against Chief Election Commissioner Sikandar Sultan Raja and four other members of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), rejecting the party’s allegations that they were unable to perform their constitutional duties and had committed misconduct.

According to a communication sent to PTI on May 21, the council had considered the complaint at its meeting on Feb 11 and decided not to proceed with it after deliberations.

The complaint had been jointly submitted by PTI and its former secretary general Omar Ayub Khan. Besides the chief election commissioner, it named ECP members Babar Hassan Bharwana, Nisar Ahmed Durrani, Shah Muhammad Jatoi and retired Justice Ikramullah Khan.

Allegations raised in complaint

In the complaint, PTI argued that the Constitution required the ECP to act independently and not favour or oppose any political party. The party maintained that the commission could not lawfully restrict a political party’s activities or prevent it from functioning.

PTI further alleged that the ECP could not ignore actions and violations that, in its view, obstructed the holding of elections in an honest, just, fair and lawful manner. The complaint accused the commission of acting through a series of decisions, actions and omissions in a way that violated the Constitution and the oath of office, disobeyed Supreme Court orders, and disrupted PTI’s functioning as a political party.

The party also claimed that the ECP had abandoned neutrality and infringed the fundamental rights of citizens, and on that basis argued that the chief election commissioner and other members should be removed in the interest of justice. PTI said the commission had breached its constitutional duties and responsibilities and should be replaced over what it described as serious misconduct, including alleged pre-poll, polling day and post-poll rigging.

Claims concerning Imran Khan and PTI

The complaint also sought accountability for what it described as unconstitutional actions by the ECP. PTI alleged that the commission had implemented a broader plan aimed at disqualifying former prime minister Imran Khan, removing him as PTI chairman, excluding him from politics, weakening the party, and then attempting to prevent PTI from contesting elections altogether.

According to the complaint, the first such step was the de-seating of the PTI founder from his National Assembly seat in Mianwali. PTI alleged that this action by the ECP was contrary to the Constitution and the law and was taken at the request of the National Assembly speaker, whom the complaint identified as belonging to the PML-N.

With the SJC decision, the complaint against the chief election commissioner and the four ECP members has been thrown out.