PESHAWAR: A single-member Peshawar High Court bench on Wednesday allowed former senator and Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl leader Haji Ghulam Ali to contest the Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry elections for the president’s post by suspending an order of the trade organisations’ director general to disqualify the ex-lawmaker from contesting the polls.

Justice Syed Arshad Ali ruled that the decision of the trade organisation’s DG on the ex-lawmaker’s disqualification would remain suspended and that Haji Ghulam Ali could contest the polls to be held on Dec 29 (Friday).

Haji Ghulam Ali, who is a candidate of the Businessmen Panel for the FPCCI president’s position, has filed a petition against the order of DG Trade Organisation through which he was disqualified from contesting the polls. He stated that the said order issued on Dec 23 was illegal and against the constitution of FPCCI.

Haji Ghulam Ali has filed his nomination papers against Ghazanfar Bilour of the United Business Group.

Lawyers Mudassir Amir and Shumail Ahmad Butt appeared for the petitioner and contended that the rival candidate, Ghazanfar Bilour, had raised an objection to their client’s nomination papers but the election commission set up for the polls had turned that down.

They said Ghazanfar Bilour later filed an appeal before the commerce ministry’s Trade Organisation directorate general, which decided the issue in his favour and disqualified the petitioner.

The lawyers said the rival candidate had raised objection that earlier the petitioner had contested polls when it was the turn of the Sarhad Chambers of Commerce and Industries to get the slot of the FPCCI president but later the petitioner became a member of the Fata Chamber of Commerce and Industry and contested polls from that forum.

They said the rival candidate had claimed that the petitioner had once again been contesting polls by becoming a member of the Chamber of Small Traders Association.

The lawyers said there was no bar in the law from contesting polls on that ground.

They added that the DG Trade Organisation had wrongfully barred the petitioner from contesting polls.

The lawyer for Ghazanfar Bilour said the petitioner instead of approaching the high court should have filed appeal with the commerce secretary, which was the proper forum for the purpose.

He added that when the appeal remedy was available with the petitioner, his petition was not maintainable.

Published in Dawn, December 28th, 2017