Election Commission of Pakistan decides to notify Imran Khan’s win on seven NA seats in by-elections

ISLAMABAD, Jan 19 (SABAH): The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Thursday decided to issue a notification confirming Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman and former prime minister Imran Khan’s victory in by-elections on seven National Assembly seats that was earlier withheld for his alleged failure to submit the party’s funding details to the electoral body.

A five-member ECP body headed by Chief Election Commissioner Dr. Sikander Sultan Raja announced the decision that was reserved on Dec 20 last year.

The electoral watchdog had taken notice of Imran Khan’s failure to submit the details of the expenses incurred during the by-polls and subsequently withheld the notification of his victory over non-compliance of the commission’s orders.

The PTI chief had contested by-elections on six out of eight National Assembly seats — NA-22, NA-24, NA-31, NA-108, NA-118, and NA-239 on Oct 16, 2022 while the election on NA-45 was held on Oct 30.

He had emerged victorious on seven seats, while the PPP had managed to bag two constituencies.

In its verdict on Thursday, the ECP noted that the former premier had furnished all required details to the watchdog, hence paving the way for the issuance of the notification of his victory.

In the last hearing, PTI lawyer Anwar Mansoor Khan had urged the ECP to allow him to cross-examine witnesses, including the bank managers who furnished PTI’s bank statements on the instructions of the State Bank of Pakistan.

The ECP’s legal representative had stated that the process of investigations had been completed and the PTI was part of it before the scrutiny committee for four years and before the ECP for eight years and not once it had demanded cross-examination of the witnesses.

After hearing the two sides, the ECP reserved judgment on the petition on Dec 20.