Election Commission of Pakistan suspends 77 lawmakers' notifications

The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has recently taken significant action by suspending the notifications of 77 candidates who were returned on reserved seats in the national and provincial assemblies. This decision came in response to a Supreme Court order that overturned a verdict by the Peshawar High Court, which had denied reserved seats to the Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC) for women and minorities.

The suspended lawmakers, hailing from various provinces except Balochistan, had been granted additional reserved seats for women and minorities in the National Assembly and provincial legislatures. These lawmakers from Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Sindh, and the Punjab Assembly were found to have legal defects and violations related to the submission of party lists for reserved seats.

Subsequent to the suspension, the Election Commission opted to redistribute the seats among other parliamentary parties. The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) emerged as the major beneficiaries, securing additional seats. Additionally, the Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam Fazl was also allocated seats in accordance with the decision.

The Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC) contested the Election Commission's decision in court but was unsuccessful in obtaining reserved seats. The matter eventually reached the Supreme Court, which suspended the previous rulings and clarified that the order solely pertained to the distribution of reserved seats beyond the initially allocated quotas to political parties.

The recent developments surrounding the suspension of lawmakers over reserved seats in Pakistan's assemblies highlight the importance of adherence to legal procedures and regulations in the electoral process. The redistribution of seats among different political parties underscores the significance of upholding transparency and fairness in the allocation of parliamentary representation.