KARACHI: The Karachi election tribunal on Monday declared the election of a Pakistan Peoples Party candidate to a Jacobabad provincial assembly seat (PS-14) void.

The election of MPA Sardar Mohammad Muqeem Khan was challenged through separate election petitions by a candidate of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz, Muhammed Aslam Abro, and an independent candidate, Mir Raja Khan Jahkrani.

The tribunal headed by former Sindh High Court judge Dr Zafar Ahmed Khan Sherwani allowed both petitions against the election of the PPP lawmaker, holding that the election was materially affected due to failure of the election officials to comply with the election laws.

Initially, petitioner Abro was declared a winner by the Election Commission of Pakistan with a slight difference of votes in its earlier results. However, the PPP candidate moved the ECP for recounting of votes and later he was declared the winning contestant by a difference of a mere 62 votes after recounting.

Consequently, a notification of Sardar Muqeem’s success was also issued.

Later, the PML-N candidate moved an election appeal against the victory of the PPP candidate in the election tribunal. He also filed an application for recounting of ballot papers of polling station No. 39 as well as rejected votes declared at the time of reconsolidation of election results of the constituency.

Petitioner Abro alleged that during the recounting by the returning officer the envelope of his valid ballot papers was found unsealed containing 118 valid ballot papers against 197 shown in the statement of count (Form XIV) and another envelope containing his 68 invalid ballot papers with multiple marks.

He pleaded that in the Form XIV no ballot paper was shown as rejected or excluded from the count and therefore these 68 ballot papers were as such valid ballot papers, which were initially marked in his favour but before the recounting they were re-stamped by the well-wishers of the returned candidate. Consequently, he said, the result of the constituency was changed in favour of the returned candidate.

Almost similar was the case of petitioner Jakhrani who had alleged the violation of the mandatory provisions of the election laws and asked the tribunal to declare the election void as a whole.

The returned candidate, however, vehemently denied the allegations against him in both the petitions.

In respect of the recounting of the votes of polling station No 38, he contended that the petitioner Abro had actually obtained 117 votes but this figure was exaggerated in the Form XIV and shown as 197 votes by the RO whereas his own votes at polling stations Nos. 85 and 152 were reduced; therefore, he immediately moved the RO, ECP and lastly the SHC for the recount before issuance of the notification in favour of the petitioner. His plea was allowed and the votes polled at the polling station No 38 were recounted by the RO, he added.

He pleaded that after the consolidation of the count he was declared as the returned candidate on the basis of his lead of 62 votes over the petitioner Abro. He asked the tribunal that both the petitions may be dismissed.

The tribunal observed that invalid ballot papers were found mixed with the valid ballot papers of both the candidates and vice versa, rejected ballot papers were found lying in the polling bags although the presiding officers of those polling stations had not shown any such ballot paper in the Forms XIV, most of the packets of the valid ballot papers were found unsealed containing invalid ballot papers having multiple stamps or blank or without any official mark and signature, in violation of Sections 38 and 39 of the Representation of Peoples Act 1976.

“Therefore, no credibility can be attached with this result of the election and it can be held without any doubt that the election has been materially affected on account of violation of the provisions of Section 38 and 39 of the Act,” the tribunal concluded and directed the ECP to issue a notification declaring the election void.

Published in Dawn, October 28th, 2014