Supreme court sets hearing dates for PTI election rigging and May 9 incident pleas
The Supreme Court of Pakistan’s constitutional bench has scheduled hearings for multiple Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) petitions, including those seeking investigations into alleged rigging in the February 8 general elections and the events surrounding the May 9 riots.
A seven-member bench, led by Justice Amin-Ud-Din Khan, will hear PTI founder Imran Khan’s plea against alleged election rigging on December 11. A related petition challenging the trial of civilians in military courts during peacetime will be addressed on December 10. The bench also includes Justices Jamal Khan Mandokhail, Muhammad Ali Mazhar, Syed Hasan Azhar Rizvi, Musarrat Hilali, Naeem Akhtar Afghan, and Shahid Bilal Hassan.
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Imran Khan, through his lawyer Hamid Khan, filed a petition in March 2024 requesting the Supreme Court to establish a judicial commission comprising unbiased sitting judges to investigate the February 8 general elections. The plea seeks to “inquire, audit, and examine” the election process, alleging fraudulent results that purportedly altered the outcomes in favor of certain candidates.
The February elections saw PTI-backed independent candidates securing the highest number of National Assembly seats, followed by the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP). However, a coalition led by the PML-N formed the government, with the party later emerging as the largest in the National Assembly after the allocation of reserved seats.
Another petition by the former prime minister calls for a judicial commission to investigate the violence and destruction during the May 9-10 riots. These events led to significant loss of life and damage to property. The plea challenges the arrests, investigations, and trials of civilians under the Army Act 1952 and Official Secrets Act 1923, arguing that such actions violate the Constitution and judicial independence.
The Supreme Court bench will also hear additional petitions, including one seeking the transfer of Imran Khan from Adiala Jail to a Khyber Pakhtunkhwa prison citing security concerns. Separate pleas targeting the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) and Chief Election Commissioner Sikandar Raja Sultan over alleged election rigging are also on the agenda.
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