KARACHI, Dec 10: An election tribunal summarily dismissed on Monday two election appeals filed against the candidature of Pakistan People’s Party Chairperson Benazir Bhutto from the Larkana national constituencies of NA-204 and NA-207.
The appellants, Saifullah Abro and Babu Ghulam Hussain Sial, who are contesting the polls from the two constituencies as PML (Q) candidates, contended that Ms Bhutto had been convicted and sentenced to three years’ imprisonment each in three cases by accountability courts.
When the case was called, their counsel, Advocate W.A. Kehar, failed to produce the conviction orders. He relied on an order passed in 2002 by an election tribunal rejecting Ms Bhutto’s appeal against rejection of her nomination papers on account of her conviction in the previous general election.
Appearing for the PPP leader, Advocate Farooq H. Naek submitted three recent Lahore High Court judgments setting aside Ms Bhutto’s conviction and sentences. The counsel said Ms Bhutto was convicted in absentia and the judgments declared that conviction in absentia was unconstitutional and illegal.
The National Reconciliation Ordinance also scrapped the National Accountability Bureau provision sanctioning trial and punishment of an accused in his or her absence. Mr Kehar said the Supreme Court had stayed the operation of the NRO.
Mr Naek produced the relevant SC order and maintained that only the benefits accruing from the ordinance had been held in abeyance.
The tribunal, which consisted of Justices Nadeem Azhar Siddiqui and Rana M. Shamim of the Sindh High Court, held the appeal frivolous in the light of LHC and SC orders but stopped short of imposing costs as there is no provision in the law to the effect.
Appellant Saifullah Abro, however, told reporters after the proceedings in the afternoon that he would challenge the dismissal of his appeal because eligibility as a candidate was a benefit under the NRO and had been held in abeyance by the Supreme Court.
Notices were issued in an appeal moved by Haji Altaf Hussain Unnar against rejection of his nomination for NA-205 (Larkana) for being a defaulter. The tribunal also issued notices for Dec 12 in an appeal seeking disqualification of Ghulam Murtaza Khan Jatoi from contesting the national polls from NA-211 (Naushahro Feroze-II) for not possessing a bachelor’s degree and for being a defaulter.
Another tribunal comprising Justices Khwaja Naveed Ahmed and Khalid Ali Z. Qazi, meanwhile, dismissed an appeal moved by Saeed Ghani against rejection of his nomination from NA-251 (Karachi XII-South) on account of his being a sitting nazim of union council number four (Chanesar Goth), Jamshed Town, Karachi. The tribunal ruled that the Sindh Local Government Ordinance and the election order barred a sitting nazim from contesting the national or provincial assembly polls.
A local council nazim or deputy must resign before submitting his nomination papers for the national or provincial assembly polls. His counsel, Advocate Adnan Karim, said he would challenge the ruling by a writ petition as membership of a legislature was a not a political but constitutional office.
Former federal minister Syed Safwanullah, meanwhile, withdrew his appeal against the rejection of his nomination from NA-251 and it was dismissed as withdrawn when his counsel, Advocate Mahfooz Yar Khan, informed the bench of the withdrawal.
The appeal moved by Nisar A. Kazi against rejection of his papers for NA-220 (Hyderabad-II) was also dismissed by the tribunal. The appellant had contended that there was no provision in the law that a candidate must be a graduate.
Referring to the relevant provision, the tribunal dismissed the plea.
