By Staff Reporter
PESHAWAR: A Pakistani court on Tuesday suspended the appointment of new opposition leaders in the National Assembly and Senate, responding to petitions from Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leaders Omar Ayub and Shibli Faraz challenging their disqualification over convictions linked to the May 9, 2023 riots.
The Peshawar High Court (PHC) issued the stay order as it heard appeals from Ayub and Faraz, who were stripped of their roles as opposition leaders after the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) disqualified them on August 5. The disqualifications stemmed from their convictions in three cases tied to the violent protests sparked by the arrest of PTI founder Imran Khan. On August 8, the National Assembly and Senate secretariats issued notifications formalising their removal.
A division bench, comprising Justices Arshad Ali and Dr Khurshid Iqbal, took up the petitions filed by Ayub and Faraz on Tuesday. Barrister Gohar Ali Khan, PTI’s interim chairman and counsel for the petitioners, argued that the ECP’s authority over opposition leaders ceases once they are appointed.
“When an MNA becomes the opposition leader, then the ECP’s role does not remain anymore,” Gohar told the court, urging it to block further action against his clients. The court issued notices to the ECP and other respondents, directing them to halt any moves to fill the vacant opposition leader posts in both houses of parliament.
The hearing was adjourned until August 15, with the bench requesting responses from the respondents. In court, Gohar detailed recent developments, including the ECP’s disqualification of MNA Abdul Latif from NA-1, which he called a misapplication of the 2012 Azhar Siddique case. He expressed frustration at the erosion of PTI’s parliamentary strength. “We won 180 seats, entered the parliament with 90 seats, and are now left with 23.”
Alleging a government plan to install an opposition leader from another party, Gohar pressed the court to intervene. On August 6, a PHC bench comprising Justices Ali and Farah Jamshed had barred the ECP from acting against Ayub and Faraz, but the order came a day after their disqualification. That bench also granted protective bail to Ayub, Faraz, and PTI leader Zartaj Gul until August 20.
Outside the court, Gohar addressed reporters, calling for an end to what he termed a “season of disqualifications.” “These disqualifications are not the solution to any issue,” he said, urging political actors to “come to their senses.”
Gohar confirmed PTI’s plans to hold nationwide rallies on August 14 to mark Independence Day and demand the release of Imran Khan, despite government requests to postpone the protests.
A PTI statement attributed to Khan described August 14 as the “next important day” in the party’s renewed protest movement. Gohar, however, also emphasized the need for dialogue to resolve the escalating political crisis.
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