Counsel for the PML-N on Monday wondered how the JUI-F could be granted more reserved seats than the PML-N when both parties had an equal number of seats, reported 24NewsHD TV channel.
Speaking in the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) during the hearing of the case related to the distribution of reserved seats among political parties in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), he said that the JUI-F had 10, while the PML-N had eight seats. “Both parties should have got nine seats each,” he argued, adding that there could be a toss in case both parties had an equal number of seats.
A four-member bench, headed by Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Sikandar Sultan Raja, heard the case and later reserved its verdict.
The PML-N’s counsel said that the notifications for the successful PML-N candidates were issued in phases. “Every winning candidate then has three days to join any political party after the issuance of the notification,” he said, adding, “Then each party’s position in terms of its strength in the national and provincial assemblies becomes clear. And it is on the basis of these seats that the parties are granted reserved seats.”
Speaking on the occasion, PPP’s lawyer Nayyer Bukhari said that the nature of his party’s case was different from both the PML-N and the JUI-F. “First, let these parties resolve their dispute,” he added.
PML-N may lose its seats, says JUI-F’s counsel
Later, talking to the media, counsel for the JUI-F Kamran Murtaza said that the PML-N’s claim was that it should get more reserved seats. “They say that they should get more seats after the joining of Tariq Awan,” he said, adding, “If any independent joins a political party after the time given in the constitution, the party’s seats reduce and do not increase.”
Reporter: Usman Khan