The Peshawar High Court has issued a comprehensive judgment in a case concerning the allocation of specific seats in the Sunni Ittehad Assembly.
Justice SM Atiq Shah of the Supreme Court authored the 30-page judgment, while a five-judge bench of the Peshawar High Court delivered the concise verdict on March 14.
The detailed decision of the court affirmed the jurisdiction of the Peshawar High Court to adjudicate cases related to specific seats within the province. It emphasized that the Election Commission’s allocation of specific seats aligns with Article 51 of the Constitution.
The court underscored in its detailed ruling that the list of reserved seats cannot be submitted beyond the stipulated time. The petitioner’s contention that reserved seats cannot be distributed to other political parties was addressed, leading to the dismissal of the application. Additionally, the judgment clarified that the Sunni Ittehad council lacked the authority to reserve seats for women.
Furthermore, the judgment elucidated that political parties failing to secure a single seat in the general election are ineligible for reserved seats. It emphasized the right of participating political parties to win certain seats, stating that the argument against allocating some seats to other parties is unconstitutional.
The detailed judgment underscored the Election Commission’s constitutional manner of allocating specific seats, noting that the Sunni Ittehad Council had not previously submitted a list of specific seats.
