ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) challenged on Tuesday the July 12 verdict of
the apex court on reserved seats, a week after the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz
(PML-N) submitted its review petition.
The Supreme Court (SC) on July 12 announced its decision that reserved seats be
allocated to PTI, reversing previous rulings by the Peshawar High Court and the
Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) and declaring that PTI is eligible for the
reserved seats for women and minorities.
This ruling came after the Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC), backed by PTI, filed
appeals against the ECP’s decision and the PHC’s subsequent affirmation of that
decision. The SIC argued that the denial was unconstitutional and sought the
allocation of 77 reserved seats that were originally assigned to other parties within
the ruling coalition.
The decision received backlash from the ruling coalition, with Punjab Chief
Minister Maryam Nawaz expressing her surprise and questioning the legitimacy of
reinstating individuals she described as “criminals of the nation.
Represented by Farooq H. Naek, the PPP’s review petition seeks to overturn the
July 12 decision that previously annulled the decisions of the Peshawar High
Court and the Election Commission, directing that the reserved seats be allocated
to PTI. This ruling affirmed PTI’s status as a legitimate party within the Parliament
and provincial assemblies.
The SC’s Practice and Procedure Committee has scheduled the hearing of the
review petitions for after the September holidays.
However, Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa, dissenting from the majority decision,
argued that the summer holidays should be cancelled to address the review
petitions promptly.
He emphasized that the Constitution should take precedence over the convenience
of judges, stating that delaying the hearing would be unjust.