ISLAMABAD: The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) will take up for hearing next week a petition seeking removal of “biased” members of the federal cabinet to ensure the conduct of free, fair and transparent general elections.

The petition, filed by Advocate Syed Azizud Din Kaka Khel and seeking the removal of caretaker Prime Minister Anwaarul Haq Kakar and some other members of his cabinet, will be heard by the ECP on Oct 10.

The petition asks the ECP to remove Ahad Cheema, Fawad Hasan Fawad and former principal secretary to PM Syed Toqeer Hussain from their posts.

The petition says that transparency of elections is not possible due to these persons being in the caretaker government.

“If the government wants a transparent election, these people should be removed from their positions,” the petition reads.

On the same date, the ECP will also hear some petitions against PTI and its chairman. According to the cause list available on the Election Commission’s website, one of the petitions filed by Khalid Mehmood seeks removal of the name of Imran Khan as the party chairman/head of Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf from the record of the Election Commission of Pakistan.

Through another petition, he has asked the electoral body to take necessary action against the PTI which, he claims, was still receiving prohibited funds from foreign entities. Another petition against the same party has been filed by Muhammad Awn Saqlain, which is also listed for preliminary hearing.

He has moved the ECP under Section 215 (4) of the Elections Act, 2017, and all enabling provisions of the law to declare PTI ineligible to obtain an election symbol.

Another case is fixed for hearing on the same day for proceedings of reply of a show-cause notice and for personal appearance of Fawad Chaudhry in the contempt of Election Commission case.

Published in Dawn, October 4th, 2023