Time’s up: Khan bound to hold fresh party polls

• Following PTI election commissioner’s order, party’s all office bearers, CEC, core committee stand dissolved on rigging charges while Imran Khan survives jolt, stays party chairman
• Justice Wajihuddin asks Imran Khan to install caretakers, hold intra-party elections in three months

In a landmark verdict, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI)’s Chief Election Commissioner Justice (r) Wajihuddin Ahmed Wednesday turned down an appeal filed by party chairman Imran Khan seeking six-month time to hold fresh intra-party elections.

Under the verdict, all office bearers, PTI’s Central Executive Committee (CEC) and the unconstitutional core committee have ceased to function. Only Khan has survived the jolt as he was elected unopposed and there was no allegation against him for rigging.

With the dismissal of the plea, all party organisations stand dissolved as of Wednesday as the two-year period allotted to the elected office-bearers by the party’s election commission also ended on March 18.

However, since Khan was elected unopposed, he would stay as party’s chairman till holding of the next elections, the verdict said, a copy of which is available with Pakistan Today.

Feeling the heat, Khan has summoned party’s consultative meeting on March 22 to discuss the emerging situation.

The tribunal has asked Khan to appoint caretaker setup who would be tasked to hold next party elections within a three-month time.

The order issued by Justice Wajihuddin directed Khan that all the offices ceased to function immediately as the commission’s previous order passed last year was operative till March 18.

“No member of the caretaker set up or the election commission would be allowed to contest the upcoming party polls, while the matter of those party leaders found responsible for rigging the previous election may be sent to disciplinary committee, which would decide whether they are eligible to contest next election,” the order said.

A well-placed source told Pakistan Today that soon after the intra-party polls held two years ago, the election tribunal headed by Justice Wajihuddin had received 76 petitions, claiming that the party polls had been rigged heavily. The tribunal held several sittings and after examining evidence, the commission issued on order on October 17, 2014, declaring the party polls had been rigged by influential candidates across country.

“The commission had observed that serious flaws had been witnessed in party elections which could not be maintained. However, the tribunal chief said that since neither all officers can be sent home immediately nor they could be allowed to serve a five-year term due to irregularities in election process, the five year term is curtailed into two years which ends by March 18, 2015,” the order said.

However, PTI Chairman Imran Khan filed an appeal, an email petition through his executive secretary Naeemul Haq, with the election commission, seeking a six-month extension in the tenure of the party office bearers.

In that appeal it was clearly mentioned that chairman validates and accepts the order. The tribunal headed by Justice Wajihuddin then announced hearing of the appeal for March 18, 2015. The tribunal requested all members of the party to send their pleas to them with regard to the hearing.

ORDER OUT:

Based on the pleas and requests made by the majority of the party members, the election tribunal issued an order Wednesday. The salient features of the order are:

“Imran Khan pleaded that the time was needed to help complete voters’ lists and bring in some constitutional amendments to help conduct party elections. Moreover, since the country was facing a war against terror, six months may be allowed to hold next party elections,” the source said.

Abdul Qayyum Khan Kundi, an office bearer of the party’s central training council, said that there was a disconnect between the party leadership and the party workers. There are 134 district presidents but none have ever been summoned for consultation on party’s affairs. Even the 34 MNAs were not consulted before resignations issue, he added.

He said that Justice Wajihuddin’s order of October 17, 2014 was a watershed event as it created an opportunity to hold new intra-party election through which a capable and ideology driven team could run the party. “But the former central leadership took that order for granted just like it takes all of us for granted in running the party affairs,” he said.

Kundi said that the verdict was a landmark precedent by all means as no political party has such a model of intra-party democracy. He said that there was no criterion to elect a member of the core committee and anybody could be appointed a party member. He said that party’s rank and file has stood up and they would have to hold intra-party elections.