The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) will announce the verdict in Toshakhana's disqualification reference filed against former prime minister Imran Khan at 2 pm on Friday (today).

According to an announcement yesterday, the ECP has directed all relevant parties or their lawyers to appear before the election supervisor at its secretariat in Islamabad.

The ECP also sent a letter to the Islamabad police demanding "round-the-clock security" inside and outside the watchdog compound for the entire day to "avoid any untoward incident". The letter also demanded that two plainclothes security personnel and a traffic warden be provided.

The ECP stressed that all necessary security arrangements have been completed, especially inside the ECP Secretariat building, and the matter is considered "most urgent".

The ECP reserved its verdict in Toshakhan's case on September 19.


The PTI chairman was referred by the coalition government for "not sharing details" of Toshakhana's donations and proceeds from their alleged sale.

Established in 1974, Toshakhana is a department under the administrative control of the Cabinet Department and preserves rare gifts given to rulers, members of parliament, bureaucrats and officials by heads of other governments and states and foreign dignitaries.

According to the Toshakhana rules, gifts/gifts and other similar materials received by persons subject to these rules must be reported to the Cabinet Department.

However, the PTI, while in government, has been reluctant to release details of gifts presented to Imran Khan since he took office in 2018, claiming it would jeopardize international ties, even after being ordered to do so by the Pakistan Information Commission (PIC). .

On August 4, lawmakers from the Pakistan Democratic Movement – ​​which is part of the ruling alliance – filed a petition to disqualify the PTI chief from public office under Articles 62 and 63 of the constitution due to his reluctance to share details of the Toshakhana donations.

They submitted the reference to the Speaker of the National Assembly, who then forwarded it to the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Sikander Sultan Raj for further action.

In its hearing on August 29, the ECP asked Imran for a written reply by September 8. In his reply, the PTI chief admitted that he had sold at least four gifts he received during his tenure as the Prime Minister of Pakistan.

In his reply, the former prime minister claimed that the sale of the gifts he got from the state treasury after paying Rs 21.56 crore fetched about Rs 58 crore. One of the gifts included a graff wristwatch, a pair of cufflinks, an expensive pen and a ring, while the other three gifts included four Rolex watches.

The Reference 

The reference to Imran was filed by MNA advocate Mohsin Nawaz Ranjha with the signatures of legislators Agha Hassan Baloch, Salahudeen Ayubi, Ali Gohar Khan, Syed Rafiullah Agha and Saad Waseem Sheikh and was subsequently handed over to CEC Raja.

The ruling PML-N is confident that Imran will be disqualified in the referendum because, they say, he has not declared in his assets the amount he got from the alleged sale of government donations.

In their disqualification reference, the MNAs from the ruling alliance included documentary evidence to support their claims against the former prime minister and demanded his disqualification under Article 63(2) and (3) of the Constitution, read with Article 62(1)(a). F).

Art. 62 paragraph 1 letter f) says: "A person shall not be qualified to be elected or selected as a member of the Majlis-e-Shoora (Parliament) unless he is shrewd, fair and unprofessional, honest and ameen, there being no declaration to the contrary from parties to the court."


Article 63(2) states: “If any question arises as to whether a member of the Majlis-e-Shoora (Parliament) has become a disqualified member, the Speaker or, as the case may be, the Speaker, unless he decides that no such question has arisen, shall refer the same to the Election Commission within thirty days, and if it does not do so within the specified period, it is considered that it has been referred to the electoral commission."

While Article 63(3) reads: “The Election Commission shall decide on the matter within ninety days of its receipt or shall be deemed to have been received, and if it is of the opinion that the member has become disqualified, he shall cease to be a member. and his place shall be vacant."


The case of Toshakhan

Last year, the PIC accepted a request by Islamabad-based journalist Rana Abrar Khalid and ordered the government department to "provide the requested information on gifts received by Prime Minister Imran Khan from foreign heads of state, prime ministers and other foreign dignitaries." … a description/specification of each donation, information about the donations that the PM will retain and the Rules by which it retains the donations so received”.


The cabinet department was told to share the required information within 10 working days and also upload it on the official website.

Subsequently, the Cabinet Division challenged the PIC's order in the Islamabad High Court (IHC), saying it was "illegal, without legal authority". The government of the day took the position that the release of any information related to Toshakhana jeopardized international ties.

In April this year, the IHC ordered Deputy Attorney General Arshad Kayani to ensure the implementation of the PIC's order to release details of gifts given by heads of state to former Prime Minister Imran since he assumed office in August 2018.