ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court of Pakistan is hearing a petition filed by the country’s election oversight body today, on Friday, that challenges a high court ruling allowing former prime minister Imran Khan’s party to retain its electoral symbol, a cricket bat.
The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) filed the petition on Thursday after the Peshawar High Court (PHC) allowed Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party to retain the electoral symbol, which is reflective of Khan’s past as a cricketer.
The ECP last month stripped the party of the symbol, ruling its intraparty polls were not held according to the country’s election laws and the party’s constitution. But the PHC declared on Wednesday the ECP’s decision “unconstitutional.”
On Friday, a Supreme Court bench, led by Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa, began hearing the petition that challenged the Peshawar High Court’s ruling.
“ECP took the stance that its decision [to revoke the symbol] should be maintained since the PTI could not conduct fair intraparty elections,” ECP spokesperson Nadeem Haider told Arab News.
On Thursday, PTI Chairman Gohar Khan told reporters the PHC decision was in their favor and its implementation was “necessary” unless set aside by the top court.
“The Peshawar High Court’s decision came in our favor,” he said. “Till the Supreme Court does not set aside this order, its implementation is necessary.”
Separately, the party moved the PHC for contempt proceedings against the ECP for not publishing the certificate of PTI’s intra-party polls on its website.
Gohar said since the ECP had not published the certificate of the PTI’s intraparty polls on its website, it could cause a delay in the regulator allotting the election symbol to his party.
The developments come amid allegations of “pre-poll rigging” by the PTI ahead of national elections, scheduled for February 8. Many of its top leaders, including Khan, are facing a number of legal cases against them and are currently incarcerated in high-security prisons in different Pakistani cities.
Pakistan is currently being run by a caretaker administration under interim Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar. Millions of Pakistanis will head to the ballot box, amid a precarious security and economic situation, on February 8 to cast their votes and elect their representatives.
Pakistan top court hears election regulator’s plea against restoration of ex-PM Khan party’s symbol
https://arab.news/25fve
Pakistan top court hears election regulator’s plea against restoration of ex-PM Khan party’s symbol
- The election regulator filed the petition after a high court allowed Khan’s party to retain the symbol
- The party was stripped of the symbol for failing to hold intraparty polls according to the election laws
Pakistan says Roosevelt Hotel deal still being structured after PIA sale
- The century-old Manhattan hotel is among state-owned properties under review as Islamabad pushes a privatization drive
- Pakistan said this year it was examining multiple options after international media reported the hotel’s possible demolition
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s defense minister Khawaja Asif said on Wednesday the government was working on structuring a transaction for the Roosevelt Hotel in New York, a day after a leading Pakistani consortium bought a majority stake in Pakistan International Airlines, as Islamabad presses ahead with efforts to offload loss-making state assets.
Asif’s comments came after the Arif Habib Group acquired 75 percent of PIA for Rs 135 billion ($482 million), marking the government’s first major privatization deal in years and reviving focus on the future of other high-value state-owned assets, including the Roosevelt Hotel, which is owned by PIA through its investment arm.
The hotel, a century-old Manhattan property located near Grand Central Terminal, Times Square and Fifth Avenue, is considered one of Pakistan’s most valuable overseas assets, though it was closed in 2020 due to heavy losses. Asked about the future of the property following the PIA privatization, Asif told Geo TV it was still a work in progress.
“The shape of the transaction is being made,” he said, adding that a previous offer of around $375 million had not materialized.
Pakistan’s privatization plans for the Roosevelt have faced repeated delays.
Earlier this year, Muhammad Ali, adviser to the prime minister on privatization, said the government was examining multiple options after Bloomberg reported plans for its demolition.
Ali said there were various options on the table, including continuing hotel operations or entering a joint venture in which Pakistan would contribute the land while a partner brings in equity.
The government also said it wanted to complete the Roosevelt Hotel’s privatization this year, though the plan does not seem close to completion.
