January 10, 2003	Friday	Ziqa’ad 6, 1423

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ISLAMABAD, Jan 9: The Supreme Court on Thursday allowed two petitioners, Javed Jabbar and Ayub Khattak, to file their nomination papers for Senate which would not be rejected on the ground that they were defeated in the recent elections.

A five-judge bench, headed by Chief Justice Shaikh Riaz Ahmad, also issued notice to the Attorney General in the same petitions to respond to the points raised about the legality of the Legal Framework Order, 2002. The case was adjourned for an indefinite period.

The petitioners had sought change in Article 8 AA of the Conduct of General Elections Order, 2002, and also questioned the powers of Gen Pervez Musharraf to promulgate laws after October 12, 2002.

Article 8AA barred such politicians from vying for Senate who had been defeated in the general elections held late last year.

The Supreme Court on Thursday ruled: “We direct that in case petitioners in both these petitions choose to file nomination papers to contest the Senate election and are not found disqualified on any ground other than provided in Article 8AA of the Conduct of General Elections Order, 2002, their nomination papers shall not be rejected in view of the provisions of Article 8AA.”

The court, however, stated that acceptance of nomination papers would be provisional and subject to a final decision of these petitions.

The SC bench consisted of Chief Justice Shaikh Riaz, Justice Munir A. Sheikh, Justice Nazim Hussain Siddiqui, Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, and Justice Qazi Mohammad Farooq.

Javed Jabbar submitted the amended petition in which he questioned the legality of the LFO. His party chief, Sardar Farooq Ahmad Khan Leghari, however, disowned the petition and informed the court through senior counsel Abdul Hafeez Pirzada that Millat Party had allowed Javed Jabbar to assail Article 8AA of the Conduct of General Elections Order, 2002, and was not interested in assailing the LFO. He said that Javed Jabbar was challenging the LFO in his individual capacity.

Attorney General Makhdoom Ali Khan questioned the maintainability of the amended petition of Javed Jabbar as well as locus standi of the petitioner to assail the provisions of Article 8AA of the Conduct of General Elections Order, 2002.

He said the Millat Party had no locus standi as it did not have the requisite number of votes in the provincial assemblies concerned.

Javed Jabbar in his petition stated that the change in the Senate election was, in fact, an amendment to LFO whose constitutionality was in serious doubt.

The government, he said, had no authority to change the date of Senate elections as it was tantamount to obstructing completion of parliament as well as transition to civilian rule.

The petitioner further stated that the chief executive’s powers given to Gen Musharraf under the Syed Zafar Ali Shah case came to an end with the holding of general elections on Oct 10, 2002.

He stated that from Oct 10, 2002, no individual or institution other than parliament was vested with powers to amend the Constitution except under the prescribed constitutional process.