Pakistan’s top poll body rejects internal polls in Imran Khan’s party, snatches its election symbol of bat

ISLAMABAD: In a huge setback to the party of Imran Khan, Pakistan’s top election commisison on Friday rejected Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s organisational elections and its plea to have cricket bat as the electoral symbol for the February 8 general elections. A five-member panel of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Monday reserved the verdict after concluding the hearing of multiple petitions filed by members of the PTI against the party elections held on December 2 in Peshawar.
The panel issued the reserved verdict on Friday, saying that the PTI failed to hold polls according to its party Constitution. It also ruled that the party cannot retain the bat as the electoral symbol.
With this decision, Gohar Khan, a close aide of jailed former prime minister Imran Khan, lost his position as chairman of PTI, days after his appointment.
After the ECP judgment, the PTI can either challenge it in the Supreme Court or it can field its candidate as independents. It can also enter into an alliance with another party to allow its candidates use the symbol of that party for elections.