ISLAMABAD – In response to the controversy surrounding the allocation of a reserved seat to an “unknown woman,” the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) took action on Wednesday by suspending a returning officer (RO).
The issue arose when the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) claimed that the “unknown” woman had been awarded a reserved National Assembly seat on its ticket.
A day earlier, JUI-F Emir Maulana Fazlur Rehman submitted an application requesting the suspension of the notification regarding the “unknown woman” and called for an investigation into the matter.
“In our party (JUI-F), Sadaf Sultan is neither a member nor listed. The notification for Sadaf Ehsan should be suspended, and Ms. Hina Bibi should be notified [for the reserved seat],” stated the JUI-F chief in the plea.
The electoral authority issued notification, declaring the success of the unknown woman for the NA reserved seat from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
In a statement, the electoral body announced an inquiry into the matter and scheduled an open hearing for March 26 to address the issue.
The ECP noted that Sadaf Yasmin was listed in the JUI-F’s submission for the allocation of reserved women’s seats. However, the woman who submitted nomination papers identified herself as Sadaf Ehsan from Lakki Marwat district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
According to the electoral body, the JUI-F stated in its application that its candidate’s name is Sadaf Yasmin, who did not submit nomination papers to the ECP.
The ECP also mentioned issuing notices to all parties involved to resolve the controversy.