PTI lawyers Qazi Anwar and Mashal Yousafzai have brushed off the criticism from some leaders within the party after the Peshawar High Court ruled that the Sunni Ittehad Council, which now has a large number of PTI leaders, was not entitled to claim quota for reserved seats.

In a brief chat with reporters outside the ECP office in Peshawar on Tuesday, Anwar used verses from a Farsi poem. The crux of the verses was that one should focus on one’s work as naysayers always criticise.

He was asked about the reaction after the high court’s decision last week as some leaders blamed Anwar for losing the case and criticised Yousafzai for making her “ustani at such a young age”.

On March 14, the PHC dismissed the Sunni Ittehad Council’s petition challenging the ECP’s decision to reject the party allocation of reserved women and minority seats.

In a 4-1 verdict earlier this month, the electoral watchdog ruled that the SIC was not entitled to claim quota for reserved seats “due to having non-curable legal defects and violation of a mandatory provision of submission of party list for reserved seats which is the requirement of law”.

Anwar said he did not want to answer the query, but used a Farsi couplet to react to the reactions. Yousafzai was smiling when the senior lawyer answered the query.

The woman lawyer thanked PTI founder Imran Khan for making her part of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa cabinet and allowing her to serve the people.

While reacting to the “ustani” title, she said that her leader had given her instructions to stop the way of traitors and conspirators within the PTI. “We have been following those instructions and Imran Khan has brought the people who made contributions to the party to the frontline and those who have fallen behind having nothing to do and will say whatever they want to.”

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Qazi and the legal team were at the ECP Office related to the Senate elections.

When asked that his name was not on the list issued by the PTI, Qazi replied in affirmative and added that he had shared a similar concern with his party and that he should have been prior informed about the decision. “But then yesterday I received the information to complete the scrutiny. So according to that order, I am completing my scrutiny.”