ISLAMABAD: In a major political victory for jailed former prime minister Imran Khan, the Supreme Court on Friday announced its verdict in favor of his PTI party.
The apex court overruled the verdict of the Peshawar High Court in which the PTI appeal against the decision of the Election Commission of Pakistan to deny the party the reserved seats for women and minorities had been challenged.
The Supreme Court also declared illegal the decision of the ECP, prompting the PTI leaders to demand the chief election commissioner to step down.
The 13-member Supreme Court announced its verdict with a 8:5 majority.
The verdict was given by Justice Mansoor Ali Shah, Justice Shahid Waheed, Justice Ayesha Malik, Justice Irfan Saadat, Justice Athar Minallah, Justice Muneeb Akhtar, Justice Hasan Azhar Rizvi, and Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar.
The court directed the election commission to allocate the reserved seats in the Khyber Pakthunkhwa, Punjab and Sindh assemblies to the PTI in accordance with the general seats it had won in the February 8th elections.
Talking to media outside the Supreme Court, PTI Chairman Gohar Ali Khan termed the verdict the victory of his party. He said that the apex court gave the stolen right of his party back to it. He said it was a victory for rule of law and democracy.
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