Pakistan: Ex-PM Imran Khan Moves HC Challenging Disqualification to Contest Upcoming Elections

Jailed former Prime Minister of Pakistan, Imran Khan, has challenged his five-year disqualification ahead of the upcoming general elections.

Khan, 71, has been incarcerated since August 5, following his conviction in the Toshakhana corruption case.

The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) disqualified the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader on October 21 due to his conviction in the Toshakhana case, where he allegedly concealed details of gifts received during his tenure (2018-2022) as premier.

While he obtained bail in the Toshakhana case, Khan was rearrested in the cipher case, accused of leaking state secrets and violating national laws.

Challenging his disqualification, Khan filed two petitions in the Lahore High Court, seeking a declaration that the ECP’s notification was unlawful, illegal, and unconstitutional, as stated by his counsel Barrister Ali Zafar.

In one petition, Khan challenged the ECP’s August notification, arguing that recent amendments to Section 232 of the Act have stripped the ECP of jurisdiction to decide on the qualification or disqualification of any Provincial or National Assembly member.

Zafar emphasized that at the time of the August 8, 2023, notification, Khan was not a National Assembly member, and the ECP had no authority to preemptively disqualify him.

Zafar further contended that the notification displayed malafide intention and undue haste by the ECP to eliminate Khan and his political party from participating in the upcoming general elections. He highlighted that Khan’s conviction is under appeal and has not achieved finality, with the high court suspending the sentence.

According to Zafar, the ECP’s notification contradicts the Constitution by overlooking the two-fold procedure outlined in Article 63(1)(h). He urged the court to declare the impugned notification as unlawful, illegal, and unconstitutional.

Imran Khan is currently incarcerated in the high-security Adiala prison in Rawalpindi since September 26, facing charges in the cipher case. Ousted through a vote of no-confidence in April 2022, Khan has accumulated over 150 cases against him since his removal from power.