- Case heard by the constitutional bench of 11 members, broadcast live.
- The lawyer indicates that the members of the SIC have disabled without notice.
- The SIC did not dispute the general elections, recalled the Apex court.
Islamabad: The Constitutional Bench of the Supreme Court observed that the Sunni Ittehad (sic) council is not entitled to reserved seats, wondering how the self -employed can join a political party which is not part of the Parliament.
During a live hearing on the reserved seats case, Judge AMEENUDDIN KHAN led a constitutional bench of 11 members who heard arguments on the question of whether the SIC could request reserved seats after the inclusion of independent candidates.
The court noted that even if the self -employed can join a part represented in Parliament, it is constitutionally not linked to them to join one who did not participate in the elections.
“How can independent candidates join a party not present in Parliament?” Questioned Judge Musarrat Hilali. “Did the Sunni council of Sunni even disputed the elections?”
The bench asked several times how the SIC could claim reserved seats, since it would not challenge the general elections of 2024 and had no electoral presence in Parliament.
Representing women denostated from women, the main lawyer Makhdomo Ali Khan argued that the SIC call had been rejected unanimously and that the elected members of the reserved seats were denostated without receiving official notice.
Judge Hilali reminded the court that the electoral commission for the notification of Pakistan had been declared zero and not avenue. “This case concerns proportional representation. The reserved seats are allocated according to the performance of the parties during the elections,” she said.
Khan argued that the previous decision of the Supreme Court had made no reference to article 225 of the Constitution, which prohibits challenges to electoral issues outside the electoral courts.
However, the bench questioned the applicability of article 225 in a case concerning proportional representation rather than direct election.
Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail, later at the hearing, said unequivocally that the Sunni Council of Ittehad was not eligible for reserved seats.
The hearing was postponed to tomorrow (Tuesday), the court ordering the SIC lawyer to present arguments during the next session.
This is a story in development and is updated with more details