The Peshawar High Court has temporarily suspended the Election Commission of Pakistan's decision that invalidated the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party's intra-party elections, consequently stripping the party of its familiar 'bat' electoral symbol. The court has issued notices to all involved parties in the case.
On December 2, the ECP had voided PTI's intra-party elections, marking the third such nullification since the previous year. This ruling rendered PTI ineligible to use its traditional 'bat' symbol. The ECP's decision cited the Elections Act 2017, stating that PTI had failed to conduct intra-party elections as per the party's 2019 constitution, the Elections Act 2017, and the Election Rules 2017.
Challenging the ECP's decision, PTI took the matter to the Peshawar High Court. The intra-party elections, during which Barrister Gohar Khan was elected as the party's chairman, occurred on December 2. However, the process faced strong criticism, notably from estranged PTI founding member Akbar S. Babar. He alleged that the party had orchestrated a selection process aimed at sidelining party workers and handing control to a select group of lawyers.
