ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court directed the Election Commission of Pakistan to address the PTI’s concerns about a fair playing field in the upcoming elections. Instructing the PTI to file their complaint with the ECP by 3 pm that day, the court also called upon the Attorney General of Pakistan, Mansoor Usman Awan, to intervene.
A three-member bench led by Justice Sardar Tariq Masood, along with Justices Athar Minallah and Syed Mansoor Ali, issued these directives based on a PTI plea for an equitable election environment.
Summoning both the Attorney General for Pakistan and the Election Commission ahead of the hearing, the court urged the AGP to facilitate the resolution of the matter.
Justice Minallah acknowledged the validity of the PTI’s concerns regarding an unfair playing field, citing reported events at Usman Dar’s residence and questioning the singling out of a single political party.
In response to the PTI’s apprehensions, Justice Masood queried why orders under the Maintenance of Public Order weren’t being prevented by the ECP. He indicated that the court would issue a detailed written verdict and urged the ECP to thoroughly address all raised concerns.
Following the court’s instructions, a PTI delegation was anticipated to visit the ECP office around 3 pm to present their grievances.
The petition, filed a day earlier, stressed the need for the PTI to participate in elections without discrimination. It named respondents including the federation, ECP, and chief secretaries of KP, Punjab, Sindh, and Balochistan.
The petition highlighted the PTI’s earlier approach to the ECP, emphasizing the lack of orders ensuring transparency in the elections, which, it argued, damaged the country’s integrity.
The petition reiterated the ECP’s responsibility to ensure fair elections but alleged discriminatory treatment by district managements. It claimed that despite the election schedule, the PTI faced restrictions on holding political gatherings and accused authorities of registering FIRs, conducting raids, and issuing MPO orders against PTI leaders and workers.
It contended that such actions violated constitutional rights and electoral laws, urging redressal of these alleged injustices.
