PESHAWAR: A Peshawar High Court bench has stayed the election of the All Pakistan Textile Mills Association’s executive committee over the rejection of nomination papers of two candidates from the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Zone.

Issuing a stay order, Justice Ikramullah Khan and Justice Mussarat Hilali issued notices to the respondents, including the commerce secretary, regulator for trade organisations, Aptma election commission and others, asking them to respond to the petitions.

The bench issued orders after preliminary hearing into the petitions separately filed by candidates Ahmad Kuli Khan Khattak and Afan Aziz against the rejection of nomination papers and changes to the Articles of the Aptma.

Candidates from KP Zone challenge rejection of their nomination papers

According to the election schedule issued by the Aptma on July 20, the last date for receiving nomination papers for the executive committee was Aug 31, whereas polling has to take place on Sept 24.

After the election of the executive committee members, polling will be held for the committee’s office-bearers on Sept 27.

Isaac Ali Qazi and Barrister Babar Imran, lawyers for the petitioners, said to keep the representatives of KP Zone out of the contest, the nomination papers of the petitioners were rejected on flimsy grounds.

Mr Qazi said initially, the nominations were rejected on solitary ground that the payment less than what was due had rendered the petitioners’ membership invalid, while in appeal to the election commission, the petitioners’ votes were declared valid in light of an order of the high court issued on Sept 5.

He added that on the basis of altogether new grounds, the nominations were rejected.

The lawyer said the commission adopted the plea that the petitioners had not submitted any resolution by their respective boards with their nomination papers.

He said as last remedy, the petitioners filed appeals but the regulator for trade organisations refused to entertain them saying the Aptma licence had expired.

The lawyer said the Aptma elects its office bearers on basis of formula of 3.2.1 among the three zones of Punjab, Sindh-Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on rotation basis.

He however said the Punjab zone had been using tactics to deprive the KP zone’s members of their turn to head the association.

Mr Qazi said according to the formula, the year 2017-18 was the term of KP zone but due to the ‘high-handedness’ of the Punjab-dominated central executive committee, the elections were delayed and thus, causing the term to lapse.

He said the Articles of Association declared the Aptma a federal entity having its principal office in Karachi with three zonal offices.

He added that over the last few years members from Punjab and to some extent from Sindh had denied KP zone the due participation in the decision-making process of the association.

The lawyer said instead of further democratising the Association, there had been a tendency shown by the larger zone to subjugate the members of the smaller zones and impose the decisions of their interest.

He requested the court to declare the petitioners’ nomination papers valid and direct the election commission to hold elections on two seats of executive committee of KP Zone.

Published in Dawn, September 20th, 2018