Preparations for elections are in full swing in the country. Different political parties contesting elections have started finalising the names of candidates for different constituencies.
It’s like “Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham” for Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) as on Thursday Islamabad High Court stalled Imran Khan’s electoral route in Toshakhana case appeal and on Friday, the Supreme Court of Pakistan granted him and Shah Mahmood Qureshi bails in cypher case.
The court turned down a plea to suspend his disqualification in the Toshkhana case, which was probably a last chance for the former premier to contest the upcoming elections.
The ruling emphasized the legal limitations regarding revising or amending a suspended punishment order. They referenced the stance of the Supreme Court, clarifying that while a sentence might be suspended, it does not imply the suspension of the judgment itself. Friday proved to be blessed for Imran Khan, as the Supreme Court granted him and Qureshi bail in the cipher case.
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) also approached the Supreme Court over the issue of non-provision of a level playing field in the upcoming elections, which the court dismissed after ordering ECP to look into the reservations of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf.
Justice Athar Minallah, a member of three-member SC bench hearing the case, remarked that, the reservations of PTI, seem to be true.
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf had been highlighting the alleged biased treatment of the party’s candidates despite the release of the election schedule.
Khan, who was sure to win the elections now stands disqualified and it will be a challenge for the newly elected chairman of the party to lead the election campaign and provision of tickets in Imran’s absence.
