Pakistani court suspends oath-taking of provincial lawmakers over reserved seats dispute

A Pakistani court on Tuesday barred 25 lawmakers from taking oath as members of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly, intensifying the ongoing dispute over the allocation of reserved seats.

The lawmakers in question had been appointed to reserved seats for women and non-Muslims. The decision followed a petition filed by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf Parliamentarians (PTI-P), a breakaway faction of former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s PTI party.

During the hearing at the Peshawar High Court, PTI-P counsel and former provincial law minister Sultan Muhammad Khan argued that the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) had miscalculated the distribution of reserved seats.

He claimed the allocation violated the constitution, the Elections Act 2017, and the Elections Rules 2017, all of which require proportional representation based on the number of general seats won by each party.

Sultan Muhammad Khan contended that although two PTI-P candidates were declared winners on general seats, the ECP based its allocation of reserved seats on only one. He urged the court to annul the March 4 notification concerning the reserved seats.

Referring to a recent Supreme Court verdict, he maintained that PTI-P, having secured two general seats in the provincial assembly, was entitled to at least three reserved seats for women and one for minorities.

In response, the court suspended the oath-taking of the affected lawmakers and directed the ECP to submit a written explanation justifying its allocation formula.

According to the commission, the reserved seats in the KP Assembly were distributed among parliamentary parties—excluding both PTI and the Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC)—based on pre-submitted nominee lists.

As per the official notification, Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl received eight women’s and two minority seats; Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz received six women’s and one minority seat; Pakistan Peoples Party Parliamentarians received five women’s and one minority seat; and the Awami National Party and PTI-P each received one seat for women.

What’s the controversy?

The broader controversy stems from the February 2024 general elections. After PTI lost its electoral symbol, dozens of its backed candidates ran as independents. Following their victories, many joined the SIC to regroup under a formal party platform.

However, the ECP denied the SIC the right to reserved seats, citing its failure to submit a list of candidates before the elections—a legal prerequisite. This decision was initially upheld by the Peshawar High Court.

In July 2024, the Supreme Court overturned that ruling, declaring the SIC eligible for reserved seats in what it called a move to reflect “the will of the people.” The court held that the 39 independents who joined the party were entitled to additional reserved seats, positioning the council as the largest bloc in the National Assembly. However, that ruling was never enforced.

The Supreme Court’s July decision was later challenged through review petitions filed by the ECP, PML-N, and PPP, prompting a high-profile hearing before an 11-member constitutional bench.

On Friday, the Supreme Court struck down its earlier ruling, declaring that the SIC and its allied independents are not entitled to reserved seats. The decision effectively restores the allocation of reserved seats to PML-N, PPP, and JUI-F.

The hearing was marked by controversy, with three judges recusing themselves.