On Saturday, the Election Commission of Pakistan issued a directive to returning officers, instructing them to reject applications wherein a member of a political party applies for the election symbol of a different party.
According to the order, a candidate must submit a declaration to the Returning Officer, disclosing their affiliation with a specific political party, along with a certificate from that party confirming their candidacy in the constituency, before seeking the allotment of a designated symbol.
The Election Commission pointed out that numerous applications had been received, indicating an intention by some candidates to violate the law, deceive the Election Commission, and explicitly breach the affidavit submitted with their nomination papers.
The ECP emphasized the mandatory requirement for candidates to file an affidavit to validate an oath form and demonstrate their affiliation with the political party whose election symbol they are applying for.
Furthermore, the commission stated that candidates who, as members of one party, seek the election symbol of another party are in violation of the Election Act 2017.
PTI Launches ‘Plan B’ With PTI-N For Robust Electoral Strategy
Meanwhile, in preparation for the upcoming elections, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) unveiled its strategic Plan ‘B’ on Saturday. This initiative involves fielding candidates under the newly introduced banner of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf Nazriati (PTI-N), as a contingency measure to ensure representation in case primary ticket candidates encounter difficulties.
As part of Plan ‘B’, PTI has directed candidates to submit tickets using both the standard PTI banner and the additional PTI-N banner. The party has chosen the officially registered PTI-N as its supplementary entity for this unique electoral approach.
Insiders disclosed that PTI has already issued party tickets to two candidates for both the National and Provincial Assembly elections. One ticket is issued in the name of PTI, while the other carries the designation of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf Ideology. The chairman of Tehreek-e-Insaf Ideology is identified as Akhtar Iqbal Dar.
