ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court of Pakistan on Wednesday issued a notice to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) regarding a ban on PTI leader Imran Khan from contesting elections for five years. This follows his conviction in a Toshakhana case involving concealment of assets. A three-judge bench, headed by Justice Muhammad Hashim Khan Kakar, took up the case amid several appeals from the PTI founder. Present in Courtroom No. 2 were National Assembly Opposition Leader Mehmood Khan Achakzai, Senate Opposition Leader Raja Nasir Abbas, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi, PTI interim chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan, Barrister Ali Zafar, and others. During the hearing, Justice Salahuddin Panwhar questioned why the petitioner had not challenged the ECP notification that disqualified Imran Khan. Justice Kakar said it would be better to summon the ECP to explain the disqualification. The court then adjourned the proceedings indefinitely. In the hearing, lawyer Sardar Latif Khosa argued that while the sentence in the concealment case was suspended, the judgment itself was not. Justice Kakar noted that the Islamabad High Court only suspended the sentence, not the conviction. Mr Khosa cited a 2019 Supreme Court case, Nasir Mehmood, claiming sentence suspension meant judgment suspension. Prosecutor General Islamabad Sarwar Nahang clarified that suspension of sentence and suspension of conviction differ legally. Justice Kakar highlighted a paragraph from the 2019 ruling which stated that unless conviction is explicitly suspended or overturned, disqualification stands. He remarked to Mr Khosa, "It seems your eyesight has become weak," for citing a case blocking the court’s relief options. The court preferred to hear the ECP’s view on disqualification. The same bench also postponed further hearings in the cipher case against PTI’s Shah Mehmood Qureshi, awaiting a detailed judgment. Additionally, the court adjourned the defamation case brought by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif against Imran Khan until after Ramazan. Published in Dawn, February 19th, 2026.