ISLAMABAD: The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has decided that the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) nominees for the upcoming Senate polls would contest elections as independent candidates.
Following the Supreme Court’s (SC) verdict in Election Act 2017 case that declared all the decisions taken by Nawaz Sharif as PML-N’s president null and void, the party had to issue new tickets to the candidates. However, the tickets were rejected by the ECP during a special session called by the chief election commissioner today.
The ECP announced that the Senate elections will be held as per schedule (March 3).
The commission also stated that the lawmakers elected on tickets issued by Nawaz as party head will now be considered independent.
On Wednesday, the SC ruled that a disqualified person cannot head any political party.
A three-member bench, headed by Cheif Justice Mian Saqib Nisar, had been hearing several petitions challenging specific clauses of the act that led to Sharif’s appointment as party president following his disqualification as prime minister in the Panam Papers case.
The bench had directed the ECP to remove Nawaz’s name from the column of party presidents.
