Islamabad, Pakistan

Pakistan’s Supreme Court late Saturday (Jan 13) stripped the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) off its iconic ‘bat’ election symbol, a move after which those contesting in elections from the party will have to fight as independent candidates. This is a major setback for Pakistan's jailed former Prime Minister Imran Khan.

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The court also declared the PTI's intra-party polls as "null and void". This ruling comes after a continued legal tussle between Pakistan's election body and PTI over the electoral symbol and rejection of intra-party polls. 

Setting aside the Peshawar High Court (PHC) order which said that the Election Commission of Pakistan’s (ECP) decision was 'illegal', Pakistan's Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa said, the ECP “has been calling upon the PTI to hold its intra-party elections since May 24, 2021 and at that time the PTI was in the federal government and in some provinces.”

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“Therefore, it cannot be stated that ECP was victimising PTI. Nonetheless, we wanted to satisfy ourselves that the ECP had not acted mala fide of ulterior reason or that PTI was discriminated against; it transpired that the ECP had passed orders against 13 other registered political parties which were far more severe than the order passed against PTI," the judge added, reported Pakistan's media outlet Dawn. 

As the verdict was pronounced, PTI's Barrister Gohar Khan expressed disappointment and announced the party's intention to file a review appeal against the Supreme Court order. 

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The entire saga started on December 22 when the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) disallowed PTI to keep its electoral symbol for the upcoming general elections. Giving its reasons for the move, the election body cited the party's failure to conduct intra-party polls in alignment with the constitution and election laws. 

Despite a brief restoration of the symbol by the Peshawar High Court, the ECP's decision was ultimately upheld by the country's apex court. 

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PTI also attempted to join the elections using the PTI-Nazriati splinter group’s symbol, the batsman. However, this plan B was also ruined after an agreement fell through, further complicating the party's electoral prospects. 

The Supreme Court's recent ruling means PTI candidates will no longer be able to campaign with the ‘bat’ symbol.

(With inputs from agencies)