PHC dismisses Sohail Afridi’s plea against ECP notice
The PHC dismisses Sohail Afridi plea case ended in a setback for the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa chief minister on Wednesday. A two-member bench of the Peshawar High Court threw out his petition challenging an Election Commission of Pakistan notice issued over his remarks during the NA-18 Haripur by-election campaign, clearing the way for the Commission’s inquiry to continue.
Justice Arshad Ali and Justice Fahim Wali announced the reserved verdict after hearing arguments from the chief minister’s counsel and the ECP’s representative.
Why the court threw out the plea
The bench agreed with the Election Commission that the petition was premature and not maintainable. The ECP told the court its inquiry was still at a preliminary stage and no final action had been taken against the chief minister.
Justice Arshad Ali observed that the matter before the Commission was an inquiry rather than formal legal proceedings, and that no legal bar stopped the ECP from carrying one out. The court advised Afridi to present his response before the Commission, which would then proceed according to law.
What the ECP notice was about
The notice was issued on November 25, 2025, after the chief minister allegedly made statements about election officials during the NA-18 Haripur by-election campaign in a way that could influence the electoral process.
His counsel argued the speech had been delivered outside the territorial limits of NA-18, and said two parallel proceedings had been started over the same matter. According to the counsel, the District Monitoring Officer issued a notice under Section 234 of the election law, while the ECP initiated separate proceedings under Section 15. He accused the Commission of clubbing a private complaint with the case and taking suo motu notice.
The ECP’s representative replied that the notice fell within the Commission’s jurisdiction and that proceedings following a District Monitoring Officer’s report were for the Commission to handle. It asked the court to dismiss the petition as premature.
What happens next
The Election Commission’s inquiry will now proceed, and Afridi has been told to file his reply before the Commission. The ruling lands at a difficult moment for the chief minister, whose government is locked in an open standoff with Governor Faisal Karim Kundi over a controversial security meeting.
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FAQs
Why did the PHC dismiss Sohail Afridi’s petition?
The court found the petition premature. The ECP’s inquiry was still at a preliminary stage with no final action taken, and the bench saw no legal bar on the Commission conducting an inquiry.
What was the ECP notice about?
It was issued on November 25, 2025, over remarks the chief minister allegedly made about election officials during the NA-18 Haripur by-election campaign that could have influenced the electoral process.
Who heard the case?
A two-member bench comprising Justice Arshad Ali and Justice Fahim Wali heard the arguments and announced the reserved verdict.
