The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) has raised apprehensions regarding the recent Supreme Court ruling that stripped the political party of former Prime Minister Imran Khan, PTI, of its iconic electoral symbol, the bat.
In a post on X on Monday, the HRCP expressed deep concern over the Supreme Court’s decision to uphold the Election Commission of Pakistan’s (ECP) revocation of PTI’s choice of the bat as its electoral symbol. The apex court overturned the Peshawar High Court’s order reinstating the bat, thereby supporting the ECP’s December 23 decision to nullify PTI’s intra-party elections.
In a brief statement, the three-member Supreme Court bench highlighted that the ECP had been urging PTI to conduct its intra-party elections since May 24, 2021, during the time when PTI held the federal government and control in certain provinces. The court asserted that the ECP’s actions could not be deemed as victimizing PTI.
The HRCP reminded the Supreme Court of its own 1988 ruling on Benazir Bhutto’s petition, emphasizing that any encroachment on a political party’s fundamental rights constituted a violation of the citizens’ rights it represented, as safeguarded under Article 17 protecting freedom of association.
The commission underscored that denying a political party its electoral symbol not only severely impedes its ability to freely participate in elections but also effectively disenfranchises its voters who rely on electoral symbols to choose their representatives.
Numerous legal experts and journalists have voiced concerns about the Supreme Court’s decision, characterizing it as a denial of fundamental rights. Following the verdict, PTI’s Barrister Gohar Khan announced that his party’s candidates would participate in the delayed general elections as independents.
