The recent ban placed on the recruitment of public servants and launching of new developmental schemes by Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) was struck down by the Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Thursday, DawnNewsTV reported.

On April 11, the ECP, in an apparent bid to discourage any pre-poll rigging, had halted implementation of all developmental schemes approved after April 1, 2018, while also imposing a ban on the recruitment and transfer of public servants in federal, provincial and local government institutions.

Subsequently, a petition was filed against the decision in the IHC, where the petitioners' counsel argued today that the April 11 notification of the ECP was "illegal".

"The ECP has taken away two months' worth of right to govern through its notification," the petitioners' counsel said.

"The ECP, according to the Elections Act, can issue this notification only after the election schedule is out. Such a notification is only appropriate for by-elections so that no minister could influence the polls.

"The election commission cannot exercise the rights of the government. Its job is to hold free and fair elections."

The petitioners asked the IHC that the notification should be struck down — a request that the two-member bench of the capital city court granted.

The order passed by the ECP had sought to immediately halt work on all development schemes approved on or after April 1, including but not restricted to gas and water supply schemes and construction and carpeting of roads.

Keeping in view past practices, the commission had also banned the transfer of previously allocated development funds to other heads. An ECP official had told Dawn that letters to this effect had been sent to all ministries and relevant departments.