The Peshawar High Court suspended the Election Commission of Pakistan’s (ECP) ruling Tuesday, which deemed the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf’s (PTI), the party of the former Prime Minister Imran Khan, intra-party polls as unconstitutional and revoked the party’s ‘bat’ election symbol.

Local news portal Dawn has reported having a copy of the order which instructed the issuance of notices to all parties involved by January 9 and suspended the Election Commission of Pakistan’s December 22 directive. The court further mandated the ECP to display the PTI’s certificate on its website and reinstate the party’s election symbol promptly.

The ECP order came just after the Supreme Court of Pakistan’s (SC) judgment, which directed the ECP to ensure a fair and free process for the upcoming general elections in February. Due to the PTI’s alleged non-compliance with directives outlined in the Elections Act, 2017 and the PTI Constitution, 2019, the ECP had passed the suspension order. The PTI was declared ineligible to obtain the applied “bat” election symbol under Section 215 of the Election Act. 

ECP is a permanent constitutional entity granted complete financial autonomy and independence from governmental influence. Its primary role involves overseeing and ensuring the integrity of elections for assemblies, the senate and local governments, with a mandate to prevent corrupt practices as stipulated in Article 218(3) of the Pakistan Constitution. Despite its mandated responsibilities, the ECP has recently faced accusations of partiality from the PTI. Following the suspension order of the ECP, PTI has also filed a contempt of court petition in the SC on Tuesday.

In a statement to Dawn, an ECP official was reported to state that the ECP is contemplating Supreme Court action against the Peshawar High Court Order. Concerned by increasing responsibilities and court interference, the ECP official emphasized the need for autonomy in ECP’s operations.