ISLAMABAD (AP) — Pakistan’s Supreme Court ruled Friday that the party of the jailed former prime minister Imran Khan wrongly denied at least 20 seats in the reserved parliament, dealing a major blow to the country’s fragile governing coalition.
The Supreme Court ruling was welcomed by Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party, which had previously been excluded from a system that gives parties extra seats reserved for women and minorities in the National Assembly, or lower house of parliament.
While the verdict is a major political victory for Khan, it will not allow his party to form the government of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharifwho came to power after February 8 elections, which Khan’s supporters say were rigged.
According to the constitution of Pakistan, 60 seats are reserved for women and 10 for minorities. These are allocated to political parties based on the number of seats they win in elections.
The Election Commission of Pakistan blocked the PTI from contesting as a party, saying it had not properly chosen its candidates through internal elections and forced its candidates to contest as independents. The Supreme Court overturned that decision, saying that a political party could not be deprived of its reserved seats.
Sharif was elected prime minister by the National Assembly in March, with 201 votes in a 336-member house. The PTI is expected to gain at least 20 more seats after the ruling, in addition to the 86 it currently holds.
Khan is currently in jail in the garrison town of Rawalpindi after convictions in several cases.
