Imran Khan’s followers won more seats than any other party. (document)
Pakistan’s Election Commission on Monday blocked lawmakers loyal to jailed former Prime Minister Imran Khan from taking parliamentary seats reserved for women and minorities after polls were marred by allegations of fraud.
The decision came shortly after Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif – who helped oust Imran Khan in 2022 – was formally sworn in at a ceremony in the capital.
In Pakistan’s 336-member National Assembly, 70 seats are reserved for women and non-Muslims, which are allocated to parties proportionally based on their success at the polls.
Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has faced a military-backed crackdown ahead of the February 8 vote, with rallies banned, leaders arrested and the campaign under scrutiny.
Candidates are only allowed to run as independents, forcing them to join the Sunni Ittehad Council, a little-known party, in a bid to restore their share of reserved seats.
“Mere affiliation/affiliation of an independent candidate to a political party does not confer the right to claim reservation of seat quota,” the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) said in a statement.
The party said it would challenge the decision in court.
Imran Khan’s followers won more seats than any other party.
But even if they secured reserved seats, their numbers would fall far short of the majority needed to form a government.
The PTI claimed that the election was blatantly rigged to prevent them from achieving a landslide victory.
Sharif and his army-backed Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz formed a coalition government with historic rivals the Pakistan People’s Party and several smaller factions.
PTI continues to face scrutiny, with state television cutting off opposition leader Omar Ayub Khan’s speech in the National Assembly on Sunday.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
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