ISLAMABAD: Justice Athar Minallah of Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Wednesday fined a petitioner Rs20,000 for filing a ‘frivolous’ petition against the appointment of Sardar Raza Khan as chief election commissioner (CEC) of Pakistan.

The petitioner, Shahid Orakzai, who has a reputation of filing ‘controversial’ petitions, has been fined for ‘wasting’ the court’s time.

IHC registrar office has also raised objections that the petitioner has no ‘locus standi’ - right to speak - in the matter of appointment of CEC.

Justice Minallah said the post of CEC was vacant for a long time and relevant stakeholders in the Parliament had recently filled it with mutual consent and in accordance with the procedure laid down in the Constitution.

Orakzai, on the other hand, argued that the ‘real stakeholders’ were not part of the incumbent Parliament and such an appointment would create ‘fuss’.

Justice Minallah cautioned the petitioner that courts are not meant to deal with such petitions. After listening to the arguments, the judge remarked that the petitioner has wasted the court’s time which could have been used to hearing of genuine litigants. Subsequently, the court imposed Rs20,000 as fine on the petitioner.

In the petition, Orakzai cited Speaker National Assembly, Parliamentary Committee as well as chairman and secretary Election Commission as respondents. The petitioner adopted the stance that constitutional requirements were not fulfilled in the appointment of CEC, hence a stay order be issued against the appointment.

Published in Dawn December 11th , 2014