The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Thursday declared all PML-N nominees for the upcoming Senate election independent candidates, DawnNews reported.

The decision was taken in the aftermath of the Supreme Court verdict on Wednesday, which removed Nawaz Sharif from his post as party head and nullified all official party decisions he took following the July 28, 2017, Panama Papers judgment.

Earlier today, PML-N Chairman Raja Zafarul Haq ─ accompanied by party leaders Anusha Rehman and Tariq Fazal Chaudhry ─ called on the chief election commissioner to re-issue tickets to the party's Senate candidates.

Haq told reporters outside the ECP that as chairman of the party, he held the authority to issue party tickets.

He said that he had submitted an authority letter and other relevant documents to the ECP.

Haq, when asked about the prospect of a new leader for the party, said that a consultation process had been initiated to appoint an acting president.

The PML-N's central working party will appoint a new president next week, he added.

ECP to hold meeting with parliamentary parties

The ECP has decided to hold a meeting with all parliamentary parties to discuss matters relating to elections, including delimitation of constituencies and electoral rolls, sources told DawnNews.

The meeting will be held on February 26, at the ECP headquarters, during which the ECP will take all parliamentary parties into confidence regarding the prevailing uncertainty surrounding the upcoming Senate elections, a source said.