LAHORE, Aug 12: The Supreme Court on Friday provisionally allowed seven candidates for the office of nazim, possessing the Shahadatul Aalmia Fil Arabia sanad from a religious school, to contest the poll on the condition that their election would be subject to the final decision on their appeals.

A Supreme Court bench comprising Justice Sardar Mohammad Raza Khan, Justice Falak Sher and Justice Syed Tasaddaq Husain Jilani observed that certain legal questions, particularly the status of sanads were involved and needed an in-depth examination.

The bench observed that the court was also to examine the question as to how the madressahs certificates and degrees could be rated on a par with those of the regular schools and colleges in the light of decisions taken by the Inter-Board Committee of Chairmen (IBCC) on July 21 this year and the policy of the Higher Education Commission. The court would hear the parties relevant to the dispute and consider all aspects of the legal question before giving a final verdict.

The apex court gave the decision in a leave to appeal moved by Shaukat Ali, a candidate for nazim from a Faisalabad union council, Sarfraz Ahmad Sahi from Daska and five others with the contention that the decisions announced by the Lahore High Court on Aug 3 and those announced earlier by the PHC and the Balochistan High Court had resulted in a legal confusion.

The sanad holders were being denied the right of contesting election for nazim and naib nazim in Punjab while they were being allowed to contest in the other two provinces.