Announcing its verdict on a presidential reference seeking legal opinion on the holding of Senate election through an open vote, the Supreme Court on Monday said polls for the Upper House will be held through a secret ballot.
The 4-1 majority opinion was announced by a five-judge larger bench, headed by Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Gulzar Ahmed.
The reference was forwarded to the apex court in January after Prime Minister Imran Khan expressed his desire to curtail the practice of horsetrading in Senate elections by introducing an open-ballot system.
READ: Open ballot in Senate polls: What do legal experts have to say?
Following almost two months of proceedings, the court had on Thursday reserved its verdict, announcing to issue it on Monday (today).
In a short order issued today, the court observed elections to the House are held in accordance with the law and the Constitution, saying it “is the responsibility of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) to protect the polls from the menace of corruption”.
While the order cited Article 226 of the Constitution to support its argument, the judges said the Parliament can decide if it feels the need to end the secrecy of the voting process.
A detailed verdict is expected to be issued shortly.
