QUETTA The Balochistan High Court BHC has upheld the election of Awami National Party (ANP) leader Aimal Wali Khan as a Senator from the province, dismissing a constitutional petition that challenged his candidacy on grounds of residency.
A two-member bench comprising Justice Muhammad Kamran Khan Mulakhel and Justice Gul Hassan Tareen delivered the judgment, declaring that Khan’s nomination and subsequent election were fully in accordance with constitutional and legal requirements.
The petition, filed by advocates Muhammad Ali Kanrani and Hazrat Ali Kakar, had sought to nullify Khan’s election, arguing that he was neither a resident of Balochistan nor a voter of the province. They contended that his voter registration in Quetta was fraudulent and violated Section 110 of the Election Act, 2017.
However, lawyers representing both the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) and Aimal Wali Khan argued that his nomination papers were lawfully accepted during scrutiny, with no objections raised at that stage. They further emphasized that, constitutionally, election results can only be challenged before an Election Tribunal, not through a constitutional petition after the notification of success.
The court, in its detailed judgment, found that Khan’s Computerized National Identity Card (CNIC) was issued with a Balochistan address—Arbab House, Khudaidad Road, Qila Kasi, Quetta—and his name was duly present in the voter list of a Quetta constituency. The ECP had also issued his voter registration certificate in March 2024.
The bench noted that the petitioners failed to provide any evidence that Khan’s voter registration or CNIC were obtained illegally. Citing Sections 26 and 27 of the Election Act, the court ruled that a person is considered a resident of the constituency where their permanent or temporary address is registered and where their name appears in the voter list. Therefore, Aimal Wali Khan was fully eligible to contest the Senate elections from Balochistan.
The court also reinforced that, under Article 225 of the Constitution, once the election process is complete and a candidate is notified, any challenge to their eligibility must be pursued through the Election Tribunal, not a constitutional petition. The petition was ultimately dismissed as inadmissible.
A dispute over the security detail of Awami National Party (ANP) Central President and Senator Aimal Wali Khan has escalated, revealing tensions between provincial and federal authorities and raising constitutional questions about security responsibility for a senator elected from Balochistan .
The controversy began when Aimal Wali Khan announced on social media that his security had been withdrawn .
This action was taken by Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Inspector General (IG) Zulfiqar Hameed, who defied explicit instructions from KP Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur that the security “under no circumstances should be withdrawn” .
