ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has asked the Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) to ‘immediately’ take up its October 18-reference pending against the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Sikandar Sultan Raja in the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) for his illegal and unconstitutional steps.
On October 18, 2022, PTI’s Senator Ejaz Chaudhary had filed a reference against the Chief Election Commissioner Sikandar Sultan Raja in the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC). PTI on August 4, after the Election Commission of Pakistan’s verdict on the prohibited funding case, had filed a reference against the incumbent CEC, but later withdrew it to add more evidence and highlight further legal aspects.
The reference filed through PTI’s vice president, Senator Ejaz Chaudhry also included an audio recording of PM Shehbaz Sharif — in which en-masse resignations of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf lawmakers from the National Assembly in April were discussed, along with other documents. The reference alleged that “the discriminatory attitude of the respondent has been noticeable time and again since 125 party MNAs resigned from their seats on April 9, which was accepted by former deputy speaker (acting as speaker) Qasim Khan Suri.”
“Their resignations were published in the gazette on April 13 and sent to the Election Commission of Pakistan, but they were not de-notified, whereas the current NA Speaker, by doing an illegal and unconstitutional act, accepted the resignation of 11 members out of 125 and sent the reference to the CEC. He took no time to de-notify them,” the reference maintained. The CEC had also been opposing the introduction of electronic voting machines (EVMs) so that the PTI’s opponents “are able to use unfair means during elections,” the reference alleged.
The reference pleaded with the Supreme Judicial Council to order the removal of the Chief Election Commissioner on account of the “commission of continuous and deliberate misconduct.” The reference also alleged that on July 29, a delegation of the Pakistan Democratic Movement met the Election Commissioner and four other members of the Commission at his office to ‘pressure’ him into announcing the verdict in the prohibited funding case.
It was a consequence of that meeting that the Commission decided to deliver the verdict on August 2, ruling that the PTI had taken prohibited funding. Thus, the CEC allegedly violated his oath, the reference argued. It contended that the Election Commission’s decision was unlawful, illegal and coram non judice. The reference further argued that the Chief Election Commissioner had violated the Commission’s code of conduct and failed to fulfil his constitutional obligations. “The CEC must be removed from one of the most respectable and sacred constitutional posts,” the reference said.
ECP dismissed several PTI pleas in prohibited funding case
Moreover, the reference pleaded that Raja had dismissed many party applications in the prohibited funding case, including a request to conduct a joint hearing in the funding cases of PTI and other political parties. It said the Islamabad High Court had provided relief to the party, asking the Commission to extend equal treatment to all the political parties and to hear their cases with due diligence and conclude these within a reasonable time. “Instead, the ECP announced a verdict in the PTI’s case only and kept the cases of other parties in abeyance,” the reference said and described it as “absolute discrimination”.
On Friday, Senator Chaudhary took to Twitter to urge the Chief Justice of Pakistan to fix a date for hearing the reference against the Chief Election Commissioner at the Supreme Judicial Council.
