Imran's party fails to obtain relief from court regarding oath-taking of newly-elected KPK CM

Peshawar, Oct 13 (PTI) Jailed former premier Imran Khan’s party on Monday failed to obtain immediate relief from the Peshawar High Court regarding the oath-taking of its newly-elected Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi.

The court, while hearing the petition seeking the appointment of an official to administer the oath, sought the governor’s opinion on the matter by Tuesday.

On Monday, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) filed a petition in the Peshawar High Court seeking the immediate oath-taking of the newly-elected chief minister.

PTI secretary general Salman Akram Raja and the additional attorney general argued that the province had been without a government for the past five hours and urged the court to direct someone to administer the oath either today or at the court’s convenience.

They further said that since former chief minister Ali Amin Gandapur had resigned, the Cabinet automatically stood dissolved.

Chief Justice S M Attique asked the additional attorney general to confirm from the governor’s secretariat whether Gandapur’s resignation had been received and if the summary sent by the speaker for the oath-taking had reached the governor.

“Is there any receipt for it?” the chief justice inquired.

Salman Akram Raja informed the court that the speaker himself was present and that the summary for the oath-taking had already been sent.

When asked for his stance, the additional attorney general said the Constitution was clear, if the governor refuses to administer the oath, Article 255 comes into effect.

However, he added that it was still unclear whether the summary had actually reached the governor.

The chief justice remarked that the governor’s opinion was essential before proceeding further.

“Once the governor’s response is received, the court can act accordingly. I have already faced a case related to oath-taking of reserved seat members,” he said.

Salman Akram Raja argued that there was a difference between the oath of assembly members and that of the chief minister, but Chief Justice Attique replied, “An oath is an oath, whether it is for the chief minister or an assembly member.” The court then adjourned the hearing until tomorrow.

Earlier in the day, PTI candidate Afridi was elected as the new Chief Minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province during an assembly session marred by the opposition’s walkout.

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly Speaker Babar Saleem Swati proceeded with voting despite the opposition’s walkout.

Afridi secured 90 out of 145 votes, while rival candidates from Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (F)(JUI-F), Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N), and Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) received none. PTI AYZ GSP GSP