• Orders PHC to decide Shibli Faraz’s appeal against his disqualification
• CB questions why PTI wants stay after fielding candidate

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court’s Constitutional Bench (CB) on Wednesday ignored a request to stay Thursday’s (today) scheduled Senate by-election for the seat vacated after the de-notification of PTI leader Shibli Faraz, the former leader of the opposition in the upper house of parliament.

Headed by Justice Aminuddin Khan, the five-judge bench also overturned the Peshawar High Court (PHC) decision that had adjourned Mr Faraz’s case indefinitely until the petitioner surrendered before the relevant forum. The CB also included Justices Jamal Khan Mandokhail, Muhammad Ali Mazhar, Syed Hasan Azhar Rizvi and Shakeel Ahmad.

The constitutional bench had taken up Mr Faraz’s appeal against his disqualification as a senator.

On July 31, Mr Faraz, along with PTI’s Omar Ayub and other party lawmakers, was sentenced to 10 years of imprisonment by a Faisalabad anti-terrorism court (ATC) for his involvement in the May 9, 2023 riots following the arrest of former premier Imran Khan.

Subsequently, on Aug 5, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) de-notified nine PTI-affiliated lawmakers, including Mr Faraz and Mr Ayub, the former leader of the opposition in the National Assembly.

On Aug 25, the ATC again sentenced the two PTI leaders to 10 years in prison in another case involving an attack on PML-N leader Rana Sanaullah’s residence during the May 9 riots.

Both PTI leaders first approached the Peshawar High Court (PHC). However, it dismissed their appeals for not being maintainable on the grounds that they had not surrendered before the court. Later, they approached the SC to challenge their disqualification.

Court proceedings

On Wednesday, PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan, representing Mr Faraz as his lawyer, requested the CB to suspend Thursday’s scheduled Senate by-poll.

However, Justice Rizvi observed that since the petitioner’s party had already fielded a candidate for the Senate by-election, it was unclear why he was seeking a stay from the top court.

Justice Mandokhail remarked that nominating a candidate was a compulsion.

But Justice Rizvi, while addressing Barrister Gohar, pointed out that since he himself was the PTI chairman and had already nominated a candidate for the by-poll, how could he now request a stay on the election.

When asked how many seats were up for election on Thursday, the counsel replied that the election would be held for only one seat.

However, he added that his clients had been disgracefully removed from two constitutional offices and therefore the SC should suspend the Senate election.

Additional Attorney General (AAG) Chaudhry Aamir Rehman told the CB that it was mandatory to surrender before the court to obtain any legal relief.

Justice Mazhar observed that the PHC had not yet decided whether the case was maintainable or not.

The counsel replied that the high court had not dismissed the case but adjourned the proceedings sine die (for an indefinite period).

The AAG reminded the court that the high court, in its order, had held that the case could not proceed further until the petitioners surrendered before the proper forum.

Meanwhile, the ECP told the CB that the PHC had described the petitioners as “evading from the process of the law”.

Justice Mandokhail wondered why the petitioners were not arrested when they appeared before the high court.

The AAG replied that the accused should have appeared before the SC, but they had not appeared even today.

Justice Mandokhail, however, reminded that the case before the top court pertained to legal rights.

The AAG reminded that the petitioner had been convicted by ATC and that the issue of legal rights was directly linked to the punishment.

Later, in its order, the CB overturned the PHC’s indefinite adjournment of the case and directed the high court to issue a final decision after hearing all parties.

Published in Dawn, October 30th, 2025