Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Thursday issued a show-cause notice to Prime Minister Imran Khan for not holding intra-party polls in PTI.
As PM Khan is the Chairman of PTI, ECP addressed the notice to him, demanding an explanation for not holding intra-party polls due on June 13, 2021.
According to ECP notice, the Elections Act, 2017 requires all political parties to hold intra-party elections on time.
“All political parties are bound to hold intra-party elections on time,” the notice said.
Election Commssion served show cause notice to Chairman PTI Imran Khan on Intra Party Election. pic.twitter.com/FCJFsaemhC
— MNA (@Engr_Naveed111) July 29, 2021
As per the Elections Act, 2017, all political parties should conduct intra-party elections before the completion of every five years. They can hold the polls in three or four years according to their respective constitutions.
The political parties should later submit a certificate signed by office-bearers of the parties, assuring that they held the polls in accordance with the Elections Act.
Read more: PM Imran Khan planning to capture Sindh in next elections?
However, PTI failed to provide the certificate on time as per the legal requirements. As a result, the ECP served PM Khan with a show-cause notice for not holding intra-party polls.
“… in terms of Section 215 (4) of the Elections Act, 2017, you are required to show cause as to why your party may not be declared ineligible to obtain an election symbol for upcoming Election (s),” the ECP notice to PM Khan further read.
The ECP gave PM Khan 14 days to respond to the notice. Failure to respond will result in further action under the law, the ECP warned.
The ECP also issued show-cause notices to two other parties for not holding intra-party elections. The parties are the banned Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) and the Balochistan Awami Party (BAP).
Read more: Govt takes strong stance against violence – Bans TLP
PM Khan’s history with ECP
In March, Prime Minister Imran Khan raised questions over the performance of the ECP for not taking action against individuals “buying” votes for their candidates in Senate polls 2021.
Criticizing the secret balloting, PM Khan accused the Election ECP of protecting those who made money during the recent Senate elections.
“The secret ballot system in Senate polls has damaged the democracy,” PM Khan had said.
Federal Minister for Education Shafqat Mehmood also said that the current ECP should resign. It failed to fulfill its responsibilities, he said referring to the Senate Elections.
After the results of the Senate Elections 2021, PM Khan secured a vote of confidence from the National Assembly.
Read more: Prime Minister Imran Khan secures vote of confidence