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ISLAMABAD: The election tribunals formed after the Feb 8 general polls have decided just around 11 per cent of petitions before them, according to an update from the Free and Fair Election Network (Fafen).
The information comes as the legal deadline for decisions by tribunals had already passed in many cases. Legally, tribunals are required to dispose of all petitions within 180 days of the filing of the petitions.
As of Oct 10, election tribunals have only disposed of 40 out of 334 petitions, for which Fafen has complete data. The civil society network has identified a total of 377 petitions, but could not obtain full information on 43 petitions in Punjab.
The ECP recently notified eight election tribunals in Punjab after a prolonged legal disagreement with the Lahore High Court, but these tribunals have yet to commence proceedings.
The slow pace of disposals in other provinces, coupled with the late start of tribunals in Punjab, makes it unlikely that all pending petitions will be resolved soon.
Of the 40 disposed of petitions, four pertained to National Assembly seats, while the remaining 36 related to provincial assembly seats. Regionally, Balochistan tribunals have disposed of more than half of their petitions (28 out of 51), KP tribunals have resolved 10pc (four out of 42), and Sindh tribunals have resolved seven per cent (six out of 83).
In Punjab, only two out of 155 petitions have been decided, and none of the three petitions from Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) have been resolved.
Most petitions have been dismissed on technical grounds.
Of the 40 disposed petitions, three were accepted, and 37 were dismissed. The three accepted petitions were filed by losing candidates for the provincial assembly seats in Balochistan.
Among the 37 dismissed petitions, 11 were deemed non-maintainable due to non-compliance of mandatory legal requirements, 15 were dismissed for lack of evidence, while seven were withdrawn by the petitioners and two were dismissed for non-prosecution.
Published in Dawn, October 12th, 2024
