In a letter to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), Speaker of the National Assembly Sardar Ayaz Sadiq on Thursday stated that the Supreme Court’s judgment on reserved seats “cannot be implemented under the Amended Election Act, 2017”.

In July, the SC declared Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) eligible for seats reserved for women and minorities, dealing a major setback to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s ruling coalition.

PTI-backed candidates, who had contested and won the February 8 elections as independents after their party was stripped of its election symbol, had joined the Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC) to form a coalition of convenience.

The ECP had raised concerns about who in the PTI should be contacted for verification, given the party’s lack of structure and unrecognised intra-party elections, suggesting that the election regulator might need to seek further directions from the court.

Last week, however, the SC rebuked the “misconceived” request by the ECP seeking clarification regarding its verdict and ordered the “immediate implementation” of its original directions.

Earlier today, the ECP remained undecided on the implementation of SC’s verdict and held a meeting to deliberate on the apex court’s judgment and its September 14 order in response to the clarification sought by the commission, sources told Dawn.

In light of the development, the speaker’s letter, a copy of which is available with Dawn.com, acknowledged the SC’s ruling, stating, “The Honourable Supreme Court of Pakistan… has directed the [ECP]… to allow independent returned candidates to join another political party months after already joining a political party as a result of the General Elections 2024”.

However, the letter stated that the ruling was issued on July 7, with amendments to the Elections Act, 2017 passed on August 7 with presidential assent. The letter highlighted amendments to Sections 66 and 104-A in particular.

According to Section 66, “Provided that if a candidate, before seeking allotment of a prescribed symbol, has not filed a declaration before the Returning Officer about his affiliation with a particular political party by submitting party certificate from the political party confirming that he is that party’s candidate, he shall be deemed to be considered as an independent candidate and not a candidate of any political party.”

Meanwhile, Section 104-A states: “Notwithstanding anything contained in this Act or rules or any other law, for the time being in force, or a judgment, decree or order of any court including the Supreme Court and a High Court, the declaration, consent or affidavit, by whatever name called, of an independent returned candidate once given for joining a political party shall be irrevocable and cannot be substituted or withdrawn.”

The letter said that in the context of the Amended Election Act, which was passed after the SC verdict, the ruling on reserved seats cannot be implemented under the new law.

“As the Judgement of the SC was rendered based on the law prior to the enactment of the amendment, the said judgment is now incapable of implementation.”

The speaker’s letter added that the amended act would “supersede” the SC’s ruling and that the apex court recognised this decision. It also stated that the ECP had a “statutory obligation” to honour laws enacted by parliament.

The PTI cannot reverse the clock: Atta Tarar

Information Minister Attaulah Tarar praised the speaker’s decision to “uphold parliament’s sovereignty” and slammed the PTI’s attempts to cross the floor of the house.

“The PTI cannot reverse the clock and decide to join any party they wish,” Tarar said during a televised address on Thursday. “They opened the floodgates, allowing anyone to join any party at whim.”

Hailing the speaker’s letter as a “milestone” in Pakistan’s parliamentary history, the information minister said that the speaker maintains parliamentary sovereignty, giving examples of when he issued production orders for arrested PTI lawmakers last week.

“In the constitution, parliament is recognised as sovereign because the people elect leaders who enact laws and can amend the constitution,” Tarar said. “No other branch has the power to do that.”

“The speaker correctly identified in his letter that independent candidates had 48 hours to join a party after winning,” Tarar continued. “How can the PTI change the fact that they joined SIC, moreover, how can they convince members to join another party?”

The information minister added that the PTI made a “mistake” by joining the SIC, which he added, “did not have a presence on the floor of the house”.

“The speaker has correctly said that according to the Election Act, independent members can remain independent for 48 hours, after which they will be considered independent if they have not joined a party,” Tarar added. “The PTI cannot reverse the clock and decide to join any party they wish.”

The information minister said, “I believe that the speaker’s act today is praiseworthy for upholding the sovereignty of parliament and standing against actors trying to erode parliament’s sanctity.

“Parliament will remain sovereign and we will fulfil our role in maintaining its sanctity.”