The Pakistan Tehreek-E-Insaf party (PTI) has asked the Judicial Power to accelerate cases related to alleged rigs in national surveys of 2024 and the controversial constitutional amendment 26, seeking “wise decisions” for the improvement of the country.
PTI leaders, including lawyer Gohar Ali Khan, Omar Ayub, Shibli Faraz and Salman Akram Raja, a press conference in Islamabad held on Monday to express these demands.
Khan criticized the formation of a government “form 47”, claiming that the mandate of the PTI was undermined. He claimed that PTI had filed 74 requests against the votes in the February 8 elections, but the courts had not yet issued verdicts.
He also spoke against the 26th Constitutional amendment, which saw the appointment of 46 judges for the Superior Judiciary, including several in the provincial courts.
The appointments have faced criticism from some judges of the Supreme Court, the legal community and PTI itself, which boycott the meeting of the Judicial Commission of Pakistan (JCP). PTI has demanded that the case with respect to the amendment be heard and immediately decided.
Ayub also went to the press conference, demanding the release of all political prisoners, including the founder of PTI Imran Khan, who has been imprisoned since August 2023.
He argued that the Judiciary should defend the rule of law and free those who are maintained by political positions, including former ministers, party leaders and activists. He stressed that Khan prison conditions had worsened, with limited access and lack of comfort.
In addition, the secretary general of the PTI requested that more judges be appointed for the electoral courts to address the requests related to the Punjab elections, which currently only has only two jurists who handle such cases.
Raja emphasized that the current Parliament lacked legal motives due to the “stolen mandate” that PTI believes that it has been suppressed.
Faraz, leader of the opposition in the Senate, reiterated that the country could not achieve political stability without free and fair elections, emphasizing the need for legislation that provides relief to the nation.
PTI is also working to form a great opposition alliance, with plans for anti -government protests after EID, led by the founder of the Imran Khan imprisoned party. The alliance would focus on objectives such as restoring the Constitution and democracy.
PTI’s previous protests, especially after Khan’s arrest in 2023, became violent, which resulted in clashes with the application of the law and military judgments for those involved.
