The Islamabad High Court (IHC) has overturned the Election Commission of Pakistan’s (ECP) decision to replace Justice Tariq Mehmood Jahangiri as the Election Tribunal judge. Chief Justice Amir Farooq presided over the hearing and announced the verdict, which had been reserved earlier.
The IHC has referred the case back to the ECP, instructing them to reconsider their decision.
The ECP had previously appointed a retired judge to the tribunal, replacing Justice Jahangiri, a move challenged by PTI leaders Shoaib Shaheen, Aamir Mughal, and Ali Bukhari.
Earlier, the ECP had accepted petitions from Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) MNAs, who requested the transfer of the election tribunal in all three constituencies of Islamabad. A four-member bench, led by Chief Election Commissioner Sikander Sultan Raja, had delivered this decision.
PML-N members Khurram Nawaz, Anjum Aqeel, and Tariq Fazal Chaudhry, all elected from Islamabad, argued that the tribunal was not impartial. The tribunal had originally been led by Justice Tariq Mehmood Jahangiri. The PML-N candidates secured all three National Assembly seats in Islamabad during the February 8 general elections.
