ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Thursday reserved order on the maintainability of a petition seeking the quashment of the reference pending against Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) chairman Imran Khan in the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP).

The matter was earlier placed before Justice Aamir Farooq but advocate Babar Awan, the counsel for the PTI chief, filed an application with the court to form a larger bench for the hearing of the PTI chief’s petition, challenging the disqualification reference.

Justice Farooq then referred the matter to the IHC Chief Justice Mohammad Anwar Khan Kasi.

Mr Khan is of the view that the ECP was bound to decide the reference within 90 days and now when it has exceeded the time limit the commission has lost its jurisdiction.

According to the petitioner, the speaker National Assembly, under Article 63 (2), could forward a disqualification reference to the ECP within 30 days while under Article 63 (3), “The Election Commission shall decide the question within 90 days from its receipt.”

The reference was filed with the speaker National Assembly by the ruling PML-N MNAs, seeking the disqualification of Imran Khan. The speaker then referred the matter to the ECP for a decision.

The petitioner requested the court to declare the proceedings pending before the ECP as null and void.

Published in Dawn, February 24th, 2017