The Senate polls in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa encountered a setback due to a dispute over the oath-taking of opposition MPAs elected on reserved seats. KP Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur asserted that the provincial government would prevent these lawmakers from taking oath, as the reserved seats in question belonged to the PTI.
The 25 lawmakers, comprising 21 elected on seats reserved for women and four for non-Muslims, were awaiting oath administration by Speaker Babar Saleem Swati to participate in the Senate polls. These seats were secured after the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) denied the PTI a share in the reserved seats and allocated them to other parliamentary parties. Earlier on the scheduled day of polling, ECP staff and election material were ready at the assembly hall, but polling did not proceed.
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Gandapur criticized the ECP for unlawfully denying the PTI its share of reserved seats and allotting them to opposition parties. He insisted that the reserved seats rightfully belonged to the PTI and that the party would stand by its commitments.
He questioned the legality of the ECP’s decision to allocate PTI’s seats to opposition parties and accused the commission of violating the Constitution. He highlighted previous instances where the ECP allegedly favored opposition parties over PTI.
In response, KP Assembly Opposition Leader Dr. Ibadullah criticized the provincial government for not adhering to laws and institutions, accusing it of following the directives of Imran Khan, whom he referred to as a prisoner. He expressed the opposition’s desire to govern the province according to the law but accused the government of lacking such intention.
