ISLAMABAD: A three-member special bench of the Islamabad High Court (IHC) will announce its verdict on a petition seeking disqualification of Foreign Minister Khawaja Asif on Thursday (today). The bench had reserved the verdict on April 10.

The bench comprises Justice Athar Minallah, Justice Aamer Farooq and Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kayani.

Petitioner Mr Usman Dar, who lost elections to Asif in 2013, filed the petition last year, seeking the disqualification of Mr Asif for holding UAE Iqama.

The petition said that Mr Asif was entitled to draw salary which was his receivable asset; however, since he did not declare it in the nomination paper while contesting the 2013 general elections from NA-110, he is not eligible to hold the National Assembly seat.

The petition pointed out that the Iqama of Mr Asif was renewed on June 29, 2017 and was valid till June 28, 2019, which established that in spite of being a federal minister, Mr Asif “intends to surreptitiously and secretly continue with his full-time employment with IMECL in violation of his oath of office under the Constitution”.

In his reply, Mr Asif contended before the court that the petitioner had concealed from the court that the issue related to Iqama had not only been adjudicated by the Election Tribunal but the Supreme Court decided this case in his (Mr Asif) favour.

It said that the petitioner has relied upon all those documents which Mr Asif had already submitted to the returning officer at the time of filing of nomination papers in 2013.

According to his reply, till the tax year 2011-2012 he received AED50,000 and declared it as foreign income in the nomination papers.

Published in Dawn, April 26th, 2018