February 21, 2008	Thursday	Safar 13, 1429

KARACHI, Feb 20: The Sindh High Court issued notices to the Election Commission and other respondents in a petition moved by a PPP candidate for re-polling in 23 of the 141 polling stations of NA-250 constituency.

Mirza Ikhtiar Baig submitted through Advocate Shaikh Javed Mir that polling in the constituency, particularly at 23 polling stations, was marred by rigging. Rangers were recalled from the polling stations after 4pm and MQM workers took them over to stamp ballots and stuff ballot boxes. He filed complaints with the Election Commission under Section 103-AA of the Representation of People Act but it proceeded to consolidate the results. Under the General Clauses Act, the commission was obliged to dispose of his complaints first.

The petition came up before a division bench comprising Justices Azizullah M. Memon and Arshad Noor Khan and it issued notices to the commission, the unofficially winning candidate, MQM’s Khushbakht Shujaat, and other candidates for Feb 26. The bench declined to pass any interim order.