IHC to resume hearing of PTI’s foreign funding case

Islamabad - The Islamabad High Court (IHC) will today resume hearing of Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan’s plea against the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP)’s order in party funding case.

A single bench of IHC comprising Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kayani will conduct hearing of the petition moved by the PTI Chairman Imran Khan.

Previously, the IHC bench had issued notices to the respondents seeking their reply in the petition while refusing the petitioner to grant stay orders against ECP’s order in this matter.

PTI through its chairman Imran Khan has moved the petition seeking court’s directions to declare that ECP has no jurisdiction to hear and decide complaints filed by private citizens questioning sources of party funds.

It was May 8, 2017, when the ECP had decided the matter with respect to jurisdiction, secondly, whether foreign funds received by PTI were passed & closed transactions and also decided ‘locus standi’ of the complainant Akbar S Babar.

In its detailed judgment issued on May 31, the ECP said that it has jurisdiction to question sources of party funds and Akbar S Babar has locus standi as he is still a party member.

In his petition, Imran Khan has again raised a matter before the court that is pertaining to the application of Akbar S Babar.

 

Babar in his application before the ECP has been questioning sources of foreign funds to PTI.

On the other hand, PTI has been contending that ECP has no jurisdiction to question the party about sources of their party funds and Babar as a private person cannot file an application before the ECP.

In this petition, Imran Khan has prayed to the court to suspend ECP’s May 8 order and declare it as illegal and void. Petitioner further requested the court to declare that the accounts submitted by the petitioner are past and closed transactions and to declare that Babar has no ‘locus standi’ in this matter.

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