Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan has strongly protested against the decision of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) to disqualify 9 members of the party’s assembly and Senate as unconstitutional.
PTI decides to protest outside the Supreme Court, consultations on nationwide protests on August 14 as well.
Speaking to the media on Wednesday, Barrister Gohar said, “We were not even heard. The Election Commission should have given us a fair opportunity to present our case. We will challenge this decision in court.” He further announced that PTI will not be nominating replacements for the disqualified members.
According to Insiders, the possibility of launching a nationwide protest campaign on August 14 Pakistan’s Independence Day was also seriously deliberated. A final decision on the matter is expected in the coming days.
On the other hand, the Election Commission of Pakistan has issued a notification disqualifying 9 PTI senators and members of the National Assembly including Shibli Faraz, Omar Ayub, Sahibzada Hamid Raza, Zartaj Gul, Junaid Afzal Sahi, Muhammad Ansar Iqbal, Rai Hassan Nawaz, Rai Haider Ali and Rai Murtaza Iqbal.
The notification states that all these individuals were de-seated after being convicted in the May 9 cases.
Earlier, the Leader of the Opposition in the Punjab Assembly, Malik Ahmed Khan Bhachar, has also been disqualified in similar circumstances.
In this regard, Barrister Gauhar, while talking to the media on Wednesday, said that ‘We were not heard at all, the Election Commission should have listened to us, we will challenge this decision in court.’ He made it clear that the party will not nominate anyone else in place of these disqualified leaders.
Speaking about the recent protest movement, Barrister Gauhar said that ’The protest was successful, the people took to the streets and raised their voices. There were vigorous and peaceful protests in 170 districts across the country.
He said, “We are peaceful people, there was a peaceful protest yesterday too and the people proved that they still stand with the founder PTI.”
He took a dig at the Election Commission and said, “This is the first Election Commission that is running on a stay order itself, they do not have the authority to directly disqualify.”
Sources privy to the meeting revealed that the PTI parliamentary party unanimously decided that its members of parliament will stage a protest outside the Supreme Court. The move aims to draw the judiciary’s attention to what the party describes as serious constitutional and legal violations.
Gohar also stated that the meeting also focused on formulating a protest strategy within the National Assembly, alongside exploring legal avenues to challenge the recent disqualifications of key party leaders.
Senior leadership from across the party attended the meeting, where consensus was reached on the need to strengthen and amplify PTI’s political narrative amid the ongoing constitutional crisis and shifting political landscape.
