Tariq Saeed Peshawar
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan on Tuesday said his party has plan B ready if the PTI is deprived of the iconic Bat symbol.
“We have devised a contingency plan, labeled as ‘Plan B,’ in case the dispute over the iconic bat symbol persists”. Barrister Gohar Ali told newsmen outside the Peshawar High Court where during the proceedings he pleaded before the court that PTI’s elections were conducted according to the Constitution.
However, Gohar sounded optimistic about the court’s decision, saying that a favorable outcome would pave the way for the timely distribution of tickets to PTI candidates.
“If all goes well, tickets would be allocated to deserving candidates by January 12,” added Gohar. Emphasizing the party’s commitment to fairness, Barrister Gohar clarified that PTI maintains no alliances with other political entities. He reiterated the party’s dedication to gender equality by ensuring a higher representation of women in the ticket distribution process. Earlier Barrister Ali Zafar Tuesday told the Peshawar High Court (PHC) his party’s elections were conducted according to the Constitution.
Barrister Zafar’s argument came during the hearing of PTI’s writ petition challenging the Election Commission of Pakistan’s (ECP) decision declaring the intra-party election as null and void and revoking their symbol ‘bat’ A two-member bench of the PHC comprising Justice Ijaz Anwar and Justice ArshadAli, conducted the hearing on Tuesday in PHC.
“We conducted party elections according to the Constitution,” Barrister Zafar told the bench. The ECP, he added, declared the party’s elections null and void and asked to hold the election again in 20 days. The lawyer maintained that the party abided by the electoral body’s decision and also provided Form 65. During the hearing on Tuesday the court asked why the PTI was insisting on securing the bat as its electoral symbol for the upcoming elections.
Responding to the judge’s question, the Barrister Gohar said that the electoral symbol issued to a certain party will not be given to others. “The election symbol is the identity of the political party. People are not educated, they will not know which political party they are voting for,” Barrister Zafar said, further informing the court that the party has had bat as its symbol since the last two elections.
He added that PTI will not be able to partake in the polls if a certificate is not issued to them. He also mentioned a Supreme Court judgment pertaining to the election symbol. The court asked him to submit a copy of the apex court’s judgment.
