PESHAWAR: A Peshawar High Court bench on Monday stayed the annual elections of all Pakistan Textile Mills Association (APTMA) over a petition challenging the acceptance of nomination papers of a candidate for a reserved seat for Khyber Pakhtunkhwa of the association’s central executive committee.

Justice Ikramullah Khan and Justice Ijaz Anwar issued the order during the hearing into the petition filed by a candidate, Ahmad Qulli Khan Khattak, chief executive of the Rahman Cotton Mills, who claimed that he was the only one candidate from the region of KP but a strong lobby in the association illegally introduced its own candidate, who was not even part of the provisional voter list.

The petitioner claimed that the said lobby had in illegal manner included the name of the candidate, Shahzad Ayub, in the final list with the sole aim to oppose the petitioner and not let the region of KP hold true representation as the central chairmanship of the APTMA for the year 2017-18.

Barrister Mudasser Ameer appeared for the petitioner, whereas advocate Jehanzeb Mehsud represented Shahzad Ayub.

The latter requested the bench to allow him sometime for arguing the case following which the hearing was adjourned to Sept 22.

Polling for the disputable seat was also due on Monday, whereas candidates on other seats have already been elected unopposed.

Barrister Mudasser Ameer argued that the candidate, Shahzad Ayub, who was a defaulter of the annual subscription fee, had submitted his nomination forms at Punjab office in violation of the Memorandum and Articles of Association of the APTMA.

He said the textile mills of the said candidate was closed three years ago and the machineries installed in his mills had already been sold and shifted from the premises. He added that the Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited (SNGPL) had already disconnected the gas supply to the concerned Zainab Textile Mills Limited.

The lawyer said Punjab Zone of APTMA had also violated the memorandum and articles of association as well as Trade Organisations Rules 2013 by creating two additional polling stations at Multan and Faisalabad wherein the number of registered voters were less than the mandatory 50 members just one day before the election.

He said the central chairman of APTMA is elected on rotation basis of 3:2:1 formula (three terms for Punjab, two for Sindh Balochistan and one for KP) and this year the term is of KP region.

The lawyer said in order to be eligible to vote and contest the elections of the executive committee and the election of the office bearers, a candidate had to be a member of the APTMA and for that it was pertinent that membership should be renewed and all dues be cleared before Mar 31 of the respective year.

He added that it was also necessary that the candidate and member was a director or the chief executive of a running textile industry.

The lawyer said the petitioner had challenged the acceptance of nomination papers of Mr Shahzad Ayub, but through the impugned order issued on Aug 31 the chief election commissioner and members of the election commission had dismissed his objection.

He requested the court to declare the impugned order of the APTMA’s election commission illegal.

Published in Dawn, September 19th, 2017