The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has revoked the victory notification for Awn Chaudhry, the candidate representing the Istehkam-e-Pakistan Party, after the general elections held on February 8. Despite Chaudhry securing 172,576 votes compared to Barrister Raja’s 159,024 votes in the constituency, the ECP’s notification of Chaudhry’s victory was contested by Salman Akram Raja, an independent candidate backed by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI).
The ECP, through its director-general of law, conveyed this decision to the Islamabad High Court, which responded to a petition filed by Barrister Salman Akram Raja by declaring Awn Chaudhry’s victory in the National Assembly constituency NA-128, Lahore, as null and void. The court further instructed the returning officer to furnish a report regarding the matter within three days.
Barrister Raja had lodged a challenge against Chaudhry’s electoral success in the Islamabad High Court, seeking the suspension of his opponent’s victory notification. Earlier, the Lahore High Court (LHC) had prohibited the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) from releasing the election results of the National Assembly constituency (NA-128) in Lahore, where PTI-backed independent candidate Salman Akram Raja had contested against Awn Chaudhry, the candidate representing the Istehkam-e-Pakistan Party. These directives were issued following a petition filed by Salman Akram Raja, who alleged that the returning officer (RO) had violated the election act by failing to release the election results.
