The PTI moved on Tuesday a reference before the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) for the removal of Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Sikandar Sultan Raja, more than two months after the party withdrew the same reference to add more evidence and highlight further legal aspects, a private TV channel reported. After the reference was filed, PTI Senator Ejaz Chaudhry told reporters that “I have paid my debt to the nation by filing the reference. The decision now rests with the Supreme Judicial Council”. Alongside him, PTI leader Maleeka Bokhari alleged that the CEC had “persistently given decisions against the PTI”. Senator Chaudhry added that they had also submitted an “audio recording of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif” – apparently a reference to purportedly a leaked clip of the premier in which the en masse resignations of PTI lawmakers from the National Assembly in April were discussed. “How can a convict approve resignations?” the PTI senator questioned.
The PTI had initially filed a reference for the CEC’s removal on August 4 – a day after the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) ruled that the party had indeed been a recipient of prohibited funding – only to withdraw it the next day to add more evidence and highlight further legal aspects.
Moved through PTI leader Babar Awan, the reference pleaded with the SJC to order the removal of the CEC on account of the “commission of continuous and deliberate misconduct”.
