Justice Syed Arshad Ali questions maintainability of petition, suggesting that matter should first be taken to Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP)
PESHAWAR: (UrduPoint/Pakistan Point News-July 1st, 2025) The Peshawar High Court (PHC) on Tuesday issued a stay order preventing the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly from administering the oath to members on reserved seats.
The order came in response to a petition filed by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf Parliamentarians (PTI-P), which challenged the allocation of reserved seats in the provincial assembly. In the petition, PTI-P contended that despite having two members in the KP Assembly, the party was allotted only one reserved seat for women, whereas it believes it is entitled to more.
During the hearing, Justice Syed Arshad Ali questioned the maintainability of the petition, suggesting that the matter should first be taken to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP). However, the petitioner’s counsel argued that once the ECP issues a notification, no other forum remains for redress.
The court was informed that although the reserved seats have been allocated, the oath has not yet been administered. The petitioner also noted that while 19 reserved seats have been distributed by the ECP, a total of 22 seats are designated.
After hearing the arguments, the court issued notices to the Election Commission and the KP Assembly and restrained the assembly from proceeding with the oath-taking on reserved seats until further orders.
