The PTI has won an important legal battle as a result of a landmark judgement delivered by the Supreme Court last week. In a majority verdict, the apex court declared the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) eligible to receive reserved seats for women and non-Muslims in the national and provincial assemblies. This gives the PTI a new lease of life in the legislature as it has been declared as a regular parliamentary party.
The full bench of the Supreme Court consisting of 13 judges announced the majority verdict which was 8 in favour of the PTI and 5 against it. The majority judgment set aside the March 25 PHC judgment and March 1 ECP decision to deny reserved seats to the SIC as ultra vires of the Constitution, without lawful authority and of no legal effect, and thus quashed the same. It has been further said that the lack or denial of an election symbol does not in any manner affect the constitutional and legal rights of a political party to participate in the elections, whether general or by-elections and the commission was under a constitutional duty to act, and construe and apply all statutory provisions, accordingly, the majority judgment said.
The verdict said that 39 out of the 80 MNAs, shown by the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) as PTI candidates, belonged to the party. The rest of the 41 independents will now have to file duly signed and notarised statements before the commission within 15 days, explaining that they contested the Feb 8 general elections as a candidate of a particular political party.
The SC has also declared that under Article 51(6)(d)(e) and Article 106 of the Constitution, the PTI was and is a political party, which secured or won the general seats in the National and provincial assemblies in the Feb 8, 2024 elections. What is more, as a result of the verdict, under Article 51(5) of the Constitution, the PTI will be entitled to reserved seats for women and minorities in the National and provincial assemblies of KP, Punjab and Sindh, according to the number of general seats secured by it. If such a statement is filed, the ECP will give a notice to the political party concerned, seeking a confirmation within 15 days that those MNAs had indeed contested as its candidates.
The SC judgment has been widely welcomed in the country. Some legal luminaries have described it as an out-of-the-box solution, while others have called it a historic verdict and a first step towards ameliorating wrongdoings and injustices done to the PTI in the past. Former additional attorney general Tariq Mehmood Khokhar said the Supreme Court’s majority opinion was a welcome relief to a nation deeply mired in existential crises, adding “It is a step back from the brink; it is a triumph for the Constitution, democracy and the independence of the judiciary.” Many political analysts have remarked that complete and constitutional justice has been done by the court, while others have said that it is a big day for democracy and rule of law.
Neutral observers joined the PTI in hailing the majority SC decision as a huge win and the righting of a wrong against it. The PML-N predictably appeared unhappy and started to question elements of the verdict which, it believes, gave the PTI relief that the party had not even sought.The PML-N and other elements of the hybrid regime it fronts would be well advised to accept the verdict, as there is no other way to ensure political stability and democratic continuity.
Needless to say, the verdict ensures that not only will the PTI be restored as a lawful political party in the national and provincial assemblies, but it will also be able to claim a large share of reserved seats for minorities and women and, thereby, solidify its position in the various legislatures. It is a total reversal of fortunes for the PTI which both before and after the recent general election, was treated as a defunct entity with seemingly no political rights in the wake of the ECP’s biased misinterpretation of the Supreme Court’s Jan 13 verdict that denied the PTI the use of its iconic symbol ‘bat.’ On this point, 11 of the 13 judges seemed to agree. The majority upheld that the denial of an election symbol to a political party does not affect its constitutional and legal rights to continue functioning as a political entity, including its right to participate in an election or to field its candidates.
The political impact of the SC verdict is far reaching. The Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) is set to emerge as the single largest party in the National Assembly, while the ruling coalition will lose its two-thirds majority. The number of lawmakers belonging to the PTI — including those who had earlier been called PTI-backed Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC) candidates — collectively comes to 92. After getting 22 reserved seats in the House, which had earlier been distributed by the ECP among different political parties, its number will surge to 114. The JUI-F has eight and PkMAP, BNP-M and MWM have one seat each, which means that the total strength of the opposition in the National Assembly will now rise to 125.
The PML-N’s strength in the House has been reduced to 108, with 84 of them having been elected on general seats, 20 on reserved seats for women and four elected on seats reserved for minorities.The PPP has 68 members, of which 54 won general seats and 12 and two were elected against rese¬r¬ved seats for women and minorities, respectively.The MQM’s 21 members include 17 on general seats and the rest are on reserved seats for women. The PML-Q’s five seats include four general seats and one reserved seat for women. Overall, the strength of the ruling coalition will remain at 209, short of the requisite figure of 224 needed for a two-thirds majority in the House of 336. It is sure that now the PTI with accrued strength will play the role of a strong opposition which would be good for the future of democracy in Pakistan.