July 9, 2002	Tuesday	Rabi-us-Sani 27,1423

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ISLAMABAD, July 8: A special bench of the Supreme Court will on Tuesday start hearing of two petitions challenging the condition of minimum educational qualification of BA or its equivalent for the members of the parliament and the provincial assemblies.

The petitions were filed by Pakistan Muslim League (QA) and Awami National Party (ANP) on the grounds that minimum educational qualification was violative of their fundamental rights.

The SC bench, which will hear the petitions, consists of Chief Justice Sheikh Riaz Ahmad, Justice Munir A. Sheikh, Justice Nazim Hussain Siddiqui, Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry and Justice Qazi Mohammad Farooq.

The Pakistan Muslim League (QA) and Awami National Party, in their separate writ petitions, under Article 184 (3), challenged the condition of minimum qualification, terming it violative of the fundamental rights of the citizens.

Both the parties questioned the validity of the Chief Executive order, inserting Article 8-A in the Conduct of Election Order, 2002, prescribing a minimum educational qualification for a member of Majlis-e-Shoora and provincial assemblies and Senate.