The Islamabad High Court (IHC) Thursday ordered the Election Commission ofPakistan (ECP) to wrap up the foreign funding case of the PTI within 30days.
The orders were issued by Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kayani on applicationsfiled by the PTI asking for Akbar S Babar’s separation from the case, thedismissal of the case, and keeping the PTI documents secret.
The PTI had challenged the ECP’s applications seeking the exclusion ofBabar, the petitioner, from the foreign funding case. It had also demandedthat all records of the case, including the documents requisitioned throughthe State Bank of Pakistan, should not be shared with Babar, who had filedthe case in November 2014.
However, the IHC ruled that the ECP’s role “is of important nature and samecannot be curtailed in any manner”. It noted that the body is a“supervisory, regulatory and administrative body under the Constitution ofPakistan, 1973 to deal with the affairs of political parties, election andits results”.
It also noted that “no restriction could be imposed upon ECP to adopt anyprocess of inquiry, investigation, scrutiny to reach out the mandate ofassigned duty in terms of Article 17(3)”.
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“If any of the party funding has been received through prohibited sources,it will affect the status of such political party including its chairman,therefore, it is necessary to dig out the truth, even petitioner beingpolitical party is also under obligation to maintain its dignity andintegrity, which has far reaching effect in Pakistani society and if anyforeign funding has been received contrary to law and mandate of theConstitution, the petitioner has to face the music,” said the judgment.
The order also said that the apex court has not “restricted” the ECP to“adopt any method to reach out the truth”.