‘Imran Khan’s bid for snap polls evolves into constitutional crisis’

Former prime minister and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan’s bid for snap elections has evolved into a constitutional crisis as uncertainty has arisen about the implementation of the order of the Supreme Court about the holding of early elections, Bloomberg reported.

According to the report, at the centre of this is Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Umar Ata Bandial who set the election date for the Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) provinces after Imran Khan and his allies used their majorities to dissolve the assemblies and build momentum for an early national vote.

Government lawmakers — belonging to the ruling Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM), an alliance of 13 political parties — then moved to pass a bill to clip the top judge’s powers on taking suo-motu notice — which means carrying out action on what the CJP deems is in the interest of the public.

The bill is now in limbo after it was suspended last week by an eight-member apex court’s panel, a week before it was expected to become law, according to Bloomberg.

In another twist, Justice Bandial ordered the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) to provide funds to the ECP to carry out the polls, after the government refused to make the finances available. Ministers have publicly criticised the court’s decision and said the national elections will be held in October.

According to the report, the constitutional crisis adds to a raft of problems that have plagued Pakistan since Khan was ousted from power a year ago by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and the alliance of 13 political parties. They have cited the PTI government’s economic and foreign policy mismanagement as key reasons for his ouster.

PM Shehbaz has resisted holding early elections, saying the country needs to focus on reviving an International Monetary Fund (IMF) bailout package and avoiding a default.

Pakistan's $350 billion economy continues to dwindle amid financial woes and the delay in an agreement with the IMF that would release much-needed funding crucial to avoid the risk of default. The deal with the Washington-based lender will also unlock other bilateral and multilateral financing avenues for Pakistan to shore up its foreign exchange reserves.

Moreover, Imran Khan, on the other hand dodges police arrests for court cases involving terrorism and corruption charges.

The PTI and allies used their combined majorities in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) to dissolve the legislatures in January, in an attempt to push for the snap polls.

As the government appeared to delay the election process, Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial intervened to hear the case himself along with a bench of judges. The five-member panel of justices directed President Arif Alvi, a member of Khan’s party, to announce a polling date which was set for April 9 for both provinces.

The government said there’s no money for local elections given the economic crisis and it was more important to focus on securing the IMF loan. The electoral authority postponed the polls to October 8 citing funding shortages and rising terrorism. 

Khan appealed the poll postponement and a nine-member bench was established to consider the matter. Two justices recused themselves, while four others dismissed the case.

CJP Bandial, along with two other judges, ruled that polls should be carried out in Punjab on May 14. The government had demanded that a larger panel of justices hear the appeal, which the chief justice declined to do.

The PM Shehbaz-led administration was ordered to provide Rs21 billion to the election organising body by April 10, in order to carry out the polls. The government rejected the verdict saying it’s a minority view and referred the matter to parliament. A separate appeal on elections in KP is being heard at a provincial court.

It depends on a parliament that is controlled by the PDM coalition parties. Government lawmakers have passed a non-binding motion barring PM Shehbaz from releasing funds to the electoral watchdog, and from carrying out the order to hold local elections next month.

At the same time, based on the Supreme Court orders, the federal government introduced a money bill seeking parliament’s approval on allocating funds for elections. But it was rejected by parliament’s standing committees.

Government officials such as Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah have hinted at imposing emergency laws. The Centre can invoke such laws, citing rising terrorism or an economic crisis as a means to justify delaying elections.

The national vote has been delayed before, as recently as 2007, when then-prime minister Benazir Bhutto was assassinated.

Khan and his party are putting pressure on the election commission to follow the court order.

With national elections on the horizon, likely to be held in October, Khan is making attempts to improve his relationship with the establishment and the United States. He fell out with both after accusing them of collaborating to oust him from power – an allegation they have denied.