ISLAMABAD: The federal government has sought early hearing of an appeal challenging Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz leader Ishaq Dar’s election to the Senate and urged the Supreme Court to allow it to become a necessary party in the case, contending that the matter had acquired an altogether different legal dimension in the wake of a recently promulgated ordinance.

Applications were moved before the apex court on Tuesday on behalf of Deputy Attorney General Syed Nayyab Hassan Gardezi requesting the court to allow the federal government to become a party in the case.

The notification of Senator-elect Ishaq Dar to become member of the upper house of parliament was suspended on May 9, 2018 for his failure to appear before the apex court despite repeated summons, a day after the apex court had been informed that Mr Dar could not come to Pakistan due to some ailment. Consequently, a three-judge SC bench, headed by then chief justice Mian Saqib Nisar, suspended the notification and adjourned the hearing to be fixed after the 2018 Eid holidays.

SC urged to fix the matter for early hearing on account of recently promulgated ordinance

The apex court issued the suspension order while hearing an appeal filed by Mohammad Nawazish Ali Pirzada against the Lahore High Court’s verdict allowing Mr Dar to contest Senate polls on March 12, 2018. Mr Pirzada argued that Mr Dar after being declared an absconder by an accountability court on Dec 11, 2017 in a corruption reference for failing to join the trial against him was not entitled to contest the polls under Articles 62 and 63 of the Constitution. He contended that the entire system would be affected if an absconder was allowed to contest election.

However, Mr Dar’s counsel in a rejoinder had pleaded to dismiss the appeal for not being maintainable and for being against the provisions of the Constitution.

In the fresh application, the federal government requested the Supreme Court to fix the hearing of the case at the earliest in the interest of justice and allow the applicant (federal government) to join the proceedings as a party though the government was not a party in the first round of litigation before the LHC.

The government contended that since a pure question of law was involved requiring interpretation of the Constitution, the applicant as a law officer was a necessary and proper party for the just adjudication of the pending case.

The plea referred to Mr Pirzada’s appeal against court’s permission granted to Mr Dar for contesting the Senate election on a technocrat seat from Punjab.

The government argued that Ishaq Dar was a proclaimed offender/absconder as he had not returned to Pakistan since 2018 despite the Supreme Court’s order.

The court was apprised that President Arif Alvi had on Sept 2 promulgated the Elections (Third Amendment) Ordinance 2021 (Ordinance No XX of 2021), published in the Gazette of Pakistan on Sept 3, 2021, inserting Section 72-A to the Elections Act, 2017.

The section suggests that the seat of a returned candidate shall become vacant if the member-elect willfully does not take the oath within 60 days from the date of the first sitting of the assembly, Senate or the local government or within 40 days of the commencement of the ordinance.

Some legal observers are of the opinion that the move has been made by the ruling party in an attempt to get Finance Minister Shaukat Tarin elected to the Senator on a seat that may fall vacant as a consequence of the ordinance.

In its application, the government contended that after the promulgation of the ordinance, the issue before the court had acquired a different legal dimension; besides, the applicant being a law officer and citizen of Pakistan also acquired a sufficient legal interest for becoming a party in the case.

On account of Ishaq Dar’s willful absence, the applicant pleaded, Punjab had since been underrepresented in the Senate, adversely affecting the right of the people of Punjab. Therefore, it would be in the interest of justice that the civil appeal be graciously heard at the earliest date so that the operation of the law may not be effected, the federal government said.

Published in Dawn, October 6th, 2021