ISLAMABAD (Daily Point) — The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) dismissed the Sunni Ittehad Council’s (SIC) plea seeking reserved seats after an alleged merger with the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) for this specific purpose on Monday.

The SIC, led by Chairman Sahibzada Hamid Raza, had submitted a request through a PTI representative, urging the ECP to allocate seats based on the inclusion of PTI-backed candidates in their party. The commission, after hearing arguments, had reserved its verdict a day before the National Assembly’s inaugural session.

In today’s decision, the ECP, with a 4-1 majority, rejected the claim that PTI-backed Sunni Ittehad Council was entitled to reserved seats for women and minorities. ECP Punjab member Hassan Bharwana dissented with the majority verdict.

The ECP cited Clause 6 of Article 53 of the Constitution and Section 104 of the Election Act, stating that the SIC was not eligible due to “non curable legal defects and violation of a mandatory provision of submission of party list for reserved seats, which is the requirement of law.”

According to the ECP, the National Assembly seats would not remain vacant and would be allocated through proportional representation based on the seats won by political parties. Article 51(6) of the Constitution was referenced, indicating that reserved seats would be allocated to parties based on proportional representation and the total number of general seats won in the National Assembly and provincial assemblies.

The PTI candidates had contested elections as independents after the Supreme Court deemed their intra-party polls “unconstitutional” and revoked their claim on the electoral symbol ‘bat.’

Reserved seats, as per the Constitution, are allotted to political parties based on the number of lawmakers elected on general seats. The ECP had received priority lists of candidates from parties before the Feb 8 polls for this allocation.

This election differs from previous ones, as the largest group of lawmakers consists of independents who are ineligible for reserved seats. A total of 346 reserved seats for women and 10 for minorities in the lower house are at stake, along with additional reserved seats in provincial assemblies. The SIC claimed to have garnered support from 86 independent candidates in the National Assembly and various others in provincial assemblies.