Finally, the Supreme Court of Pakistan announced its opinion on the presidential reference regarding Senate elections, saying that polls for the upper house of parliament will be held through a secret ballot. However, SC in its opinion, also stated that the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) was empowered to take all measures to curb corrupt practices under Article 218 (3).
Political jockeying in the country has further intensified ahead of the Senate polls. The anti-government coalition is working on all options, including the Long March, to oust the PTI-led federal government, and despite all the claims, the opposition seems to be united.
In the by-elections from Karachi to Sanghar, the Opposition parties have won their respective seats again, while PML-N had also snatched the seat in Nowshera from the ruling PTI. In the light of these results, the government is under a lot of pressure and the opposition is more optimistic to send the government packing.
On the other hand, the ruling Tehreek-e-Insaaf saw chaos in the distribution of tickets for the Senate elections. Whether it is the nomination of Faisal Wawda in Sindh or Abdul Qadir Baloch in Balochistan, the party members openly opposed the nominations. Even Dr Amir Liaquat, a MNA elected from NA-245 constituency in Karachi, has declared that he will not vote for Abdul Hafeez Sheikh in the Senate polls.
Thus, the upcoming Senate election is currently the biggest challenge for the government. Members of the National Assembly elect senators from Islamabad, while the opposition alliance certainly does not have a majority in NA. With Senate elections being held by secret ballot, anyone can face upsets as in the past by buying and selling members.
In 2018, PTI expelled 20 of its MPAs from the party for horse-trading. According to the results, the PML-N was the biggest party in the Senate after bagging the most seats in polls. The PPP was the runner-up in Saturday’s polls, but it also lost a net of six seats — and its majority — in the Upper House. Nonetheless, it certainly ‘outperformed’ expectations, bagging at least three seats more than were expected. The PTI, on the other hand, managed to secure its expected number of seats.
Such examples in the past show that anything could happen. In this context, Prime Minister Imran Khan was trying to hold the Senate elections through open ballot, which was strongly opposed by the opposition. In the past, the major parties in the opposition alliance, the PML-N and the PPP, were in favor of holding Senate elections through an open ballot.
The Senate election on March 3 is the biggest political test for Prime Minister Imran Khan due to the internal turmoil of the ruling PTI. And the most important seat in the 2021 Senate polls will be Islamabad, on which Dr Abdul Hafeez Sheikh and Yousuf Raza Gilani are the candidates. Numerically, the success of Dr. Abdul Hafeez Sheikh is certain, but in the sale and purchase of ministers, Gillani will succeed.
Yousuf Raza Gilani’s victory means that the PTI government could not complete its tenure and a no-confidence motion would be tabled against Imran Khan, which will also be a victory for opposition. However, it should be clarified that if horse-trading happens, it will be a question mark for Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP).
