The much-anticipated verdict is out. The Supreme Court (SC) bench, with a majority of 3-2, ordered the holding of elections in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab within 90 days. A majority of the five-member bench, which included Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Umar Ata Bandial, Justice Mansoor Ali Shah, Justice Munib Akhtar, Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail, and Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar, issued the ruling. Chief Justice Bandial, Justice Munib Akhtar, and Justice Mazhar gave the majority verdict, while Justice Mandokhail and Justice Shah dissented.
The issue had been lingering on since the two provincial assemblies, where the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) was in power, were dissolved on January 14 and 18, respectively. With the SC verdict, the issue seems to have been sorted out, or that is how it seems.
What would the provincial governors and the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) do now? We will have to wait and see.
Chief Justice Bandial had taken suo motu notice of the delay in holding of elections in the two provinces – an issue that had been a bone of contention between the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) government and the opposition PTI. While taking notice, the chief justice had said that there appeared to be a “lack of clarity” on the matter.
On Wednesday (March 1), the court observed that “parliament is a salient feature of the Constitution. There can be no parliamentary democracy without Parliament or the provincial assemblies”.
From the onset, the constitution of the bench saw some hiccups. On Feb 24, Justice Mandokhail objected to the suo motu notice, terming it unjustified. He also raised the issue of the audio recordings allegedly of a fellow judge. The ruling coalition had also urged the Supreme Court to form a bench comprising all SC judges, except Justice Ijazul Ahsan and Justice Sayyed Mazahar Ali Akbar Naqvi. It had contended that two members of the bench, Justice Ahsan and Justice Naqvi, had already rendered their opinion on the issue, therefore it would amount to a violation of Article 10-A.
A nine-member bench was dissolved and a five-member bench reconstituted after Justice Ijazul Ahsan, Justice Mazahar Ali Akbar Naqvi, Justice Athar Minallah and Justice Yahyah Afridi distanced themselves from the case.
The PTI had approached the Lahore High Court on Jan 27, seeking orders for the Punjab governor to immediately announce a date for holding elections in the province. As a result, the high court directed the ECP to immediately announce the date in consultation with the governor.
President Arif Alvi, too, called on the Election Commission to announce the dates for the polls, but the governors paid no heed.
President Alvi then invited Chief Election Commissioner Sikandar Sultan Raja for a meeting on the election issue, but the ECP responded by saying the president had no role in it.
Finally, the president took the decision unilaterally, announcing April 9 as the date for elections in the two provincial assemblies, which received considerable backlash from the coalition set-up.
Will the SC verdict finally put to an end the political wrangling that the country has been embroiled in for the last year? Will the government go for a review? These questions will get answers in the coming days.
For now, the government does not have many options. Sooner or later, it will have to announce the date for the polls in the two provinces. If that happens, it will be for the first time elections in the two provinces will be held separately from the rest of the country.
The National Assembly as well as the Sindh and Balochistan assemblies are still functioning. The ECP should weigh all options and proceed. One thing is for sure – there are no escaping elections now.
The announcement of the election is anticipated to provide stability to the political environment since PTI Chairman Imran Khan said on Wednesday that the party’s court arrest movement will be suspended. It is time for all parties, including the ruling alliance, to launch election campaigns in KP and Punjab. The ruling should not be viewed as a win for any party, but a victory for the Constitution.
The Supreme Court’s judgement should be obeyed because the Constitution and parliamentary democracy should triumph in Pakistan. The good news is that, despite a divided ruling, all five judges agreed on the importance of holding elections within 90 days. If one government hinders now, another will tomorrow, and ultimately a third will, posing a threat to the core framework of the Constitution. Federal Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar should avoid putting any obstacles in the way of elections.
His claim that these petitions were denied by a 4-3 vote is a farce. Elections must be held immediately, according to the judgement. There will be no more discussion about the continuance of elections and assemblies. The procedure should be facilitated by the law minister.
