PESHAWAR: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi has petitioned the Peshawar High Court to challenge the notices served to him by the Election Commission of Pakistan. Afridi contended that his summoning by the ECP was unwarranted and unlawful, asserting that it violated his fundamental rights under Articles 9, 10A, 17, and 25.
Earlier, Afridi failed to appear before the ECP during a hearing concerning alleged threats made against election officials, which led the Chief Election Commissioner to indicate that an interim order would be issued later. The hearing took place at the ECP headquarters in Islamabad, with heavy security deployed by Islamabad Police, Rangers, and the Frontier Constabulary.
Although Afridi and candidate Shehrnaz Bano Omar Ayub did not attend, Afridi’s legal team, led by Ali Bukhari, along with the KP Advocate General, were present. The ECP emphasized that Afridi had been summoned in person, while Bukhari explained that an exemption had been requested due to the chief minister’s prior commitments.
