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Islamabad [Pakistan]October 22 (ANI): The reaction to the Pakistan Election Commission’s decision to disqualify former Prime Minister Imran Khan in the ‘Toshakhana’ case is in line with expectations that the ruling party praised the verdict and the PTI slammed it.
While the ruling coalition welcomed the decision, the opposition Pakistan Justice Movement (PTI) remained hopeful for the Islamabad High Court, Dawn reported on Saturday.
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Reacting to the incident, Pakistani Prime Minister Sheikh Baz Sharif said the ECP had served justice and urged PTI leaders and workers not to take the law into their hands.
“The myth of Imran Khan’s honesty and wisdom has been busted. The country has seen how the Prime Minister’s Office is being abused for personal gain,” he tweeted.
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Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Vice President Maryam Nawaz also reacted to the incident in a tweet, saying “Pakistan’s first certified liar and thief disqualified, with irrefutable evidence.”
Speaking at an event in Karachi, Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) leader and foreign minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari said this was just the beginning and went on to predict more attacks against Imran Khan such decisions.
Instead, Imran Khan’s party, the PTI, called the decision outside the ECP’s purview, accusing the agency of being “unbalanced,” Dawn reported.
PTI also announced on Friday that it would appeal the decision to the Islamabad High Court (IHC).
PTI vice-chairman Shah Mahmood Qureshi calls ECP verdict ‘without merit’
“Imran Khan will remain party chairman as the committee has no power to rule on such issues. We will challenge this decision in the Supreme Court,” he said.
The party’s central secretary, Assad Omar, also reacted strongly to the decision, saying the verdict would not even last a few hours.
“We look forward to this judgment. Our lawyers are ready, the petition is ready and the decision will be challenged in the High Court,” he said.
Senior Vice President Fawad Chowdhury also reacted violently to the verdict. “It was a wrong decision, the ECP cannot remove Imran Khan. The ECP fully meets our expectations of them,” he told the media.
“Today is the beginning of the revolution. No one can disqualify Imran Khan. Only the public can do that,” he vowed.
Earlier on Saturday, PTI chairman Imran Khan moved the Islamabad High Court to challenge the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) order disqualifying him from the Toshakhana case, according to Pakistani media reports.
According to Geo News, the chairman of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has asked the IHC to declare, discover and hold ECP orders that violate the established legal principles in Article 63 of the constitution.
Imran Khan also asked for a suspension of the order and restrictions on further proceedings until the petition is finally processed.
The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Friday disqualified Pakistan Justice Movement leader and former Prime Minister Imran Khan in its ruling in the Toshakhana case, ruling that he was no longer a member of the National Assembly.
During the Toshakhana case hearing, Imran Khan’s lawyer Ali Zafar admitted that his client had sold at least four gifts he received in 2018-19.
“These gifts were sold for Rs 58 million and the receipt was attached to the income tax return filed by my client,” the lawyer told ECP.
Gifts received by government officials will reportedly be reported immediately so that their value can be assessed. Only after an evaluation can the recipient take the gift, if he wants to keep it, after depositing a specific amount.
These gifts are either kept in the Toshakhana or can be auctioned and the money obtained through it will be deposited into the state treasury.
Imran Khan reportedly earned millions of rupees from these jewelry-grade watches gifted to him by foreign dignitaries, according to the International News. (ANI)
(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from the Syndicated News feed, the body of the content may not have been modified or edited by LatestLY staff)
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