Imran Khan's party PTI supporters protest against government in Lahore. File

The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has stripped the Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaf (PTI) of its iconic “bat” symbol — a sign that depicts its founder, Imran Khan’s former life of cricket.

Announcing its reserved verdict, a five-member ECP bench — headed by Chief Election Commissioner Sikandar Sultan Raja — declared PTI's intra-party elections "unlawful.”

The 11-page order was announced on the petition of Akbar S Babar, a former PTI member, who claimed that the PTI did not stage the elections in line with the rules. This serves as a major blow to the former ruling party as it gears up for the Feb.8 elections, with its founder — PTI's voter driving force — already behind bars for months — and his release does not seem soon, Geo News reported.

"The PTI has not complied with our directions [...] and failed to hold the intra-party election in accordance with the PTI prevailing Constitution, 2019, and Election Act, 2017, and Election Rules, 2017,” the order read.

Geo News reported that with the elections being declared unlawful, Barrister Gohar Ali Khan, who replaced Imran as the party's chairman, is no longer the party's top head.

‘Famous London Plan’

Moments after news of the ECP’s decision was aired, the PTI took to X to term the decision part of the “famous London Plan” and a “disgusting and shameful attempt to stop PTI from [participating in the] election.”

It claimed that the party would still win the general elections, maintaining that it would appeal the decision at every forum. It asserted that its candidates would indeed contest the polls with the ‘bat’ symbol, come what may.

In case a party fails to obtain an election symbol through a judicial intervention, its candidates have to contest for the national and provincial assemblies’ seats as independents. In that case, it would not be possible for them to join the PTI, even after winning the elections, because they can only join a party duly enlisted with the ECP.

In that scenario, they may be susceptible to pressures to join other parties, with no fear of losing their seats under the defection clause.

The only way for the party to get an election symbol is if the superior judiciary declares its intra-party elections valid.

The party also seems to be running out of time as the extended deadline for submitting the nomination papers expires on Sunday and the party only has one day to move courts against the ECP’s decision.

The PTI has claimed that its leaders, going to receive or submit nomination papers for the Feb.8 general elections report being stopped, arrested or harassed.

In several cases, party hopefuls were not even allowed to reach the returning officers, belying the caretaker government’s claim about providing a level playing field to all, the PTI officials said.

Meanwhile, the Lahore High Court (LHC) disposed of a petition against an alleged incident of nomination papers being snatched in Mianwali after police denied any such incident.

According to the party's lawyers, police have prepared a list of over 50 PTI leaders, who are already booked in May 9 riots cases registered across Punjab, effectively preventing them from entering the poll process.

PTI leaders said that their constitutional right was being trampled by the police.

Incarcerated Dr Yasmin Rashid’s husband Rashid Nabi Malik was arrested from the returning officer’s office, when he went to submit her nomination papers.

Malik was injured in a scuffle with police when he resisted to give them her papers to contest against PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif.

PTI Secretary General Omar Ayub in an X post urged the Election Commission of Pakistan chief "to take note and order this madness to stop.”

Otherwise, he stated, "Should we assume that the elections that will be conducted in Pakistan will be the most controversial and rigged elections in the history of Pakistan.”