ISLAMABAD: Reiterating the ruling coalition’s stance that it would complete its constitutional term, the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) strongly rejected the Supreme Court verdict in the case of the Punjab chief minister’s election and, once again asked for the interpretation of Article 63-A of the Constitution by a full bench of the apex court.

“The government will complete its term and the next general elections will be held on time,” PDM chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman said at a joint press conference with Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) vice president Maryam Nawaz, after a meeting of the alliance, held on Thursday.

He said two resolutions were adopted unanimously by the forum, including the one which said that a presidential reference should be sent to the Supreme Court seeking interpretation of Article 63-A through a full court bench.

Article 63-A is related to the disqualification of member (of national and provincial assemblies) on defection ground.

The meeting, he said, emphasised that under the Constitution, no institution could interfere in the domain of other institutions.

Fazlur Rehman, who is also chief of his own faction of the JUI, said the PDM will also hold threadbare discussions on the issue where other political parties not part of PDM will also be invited.

In the second resolution, he said, the alliance had demanded that the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) immediately announce its verdict in the prohibited funding case against Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI).

“We will stage sit-in in front of the ECP office if a decision is not announced,” Fazlur Rehman said.

Lashing out at Imran Khan, he termed the PTI chief “the biggest criminal in the country” adding that the government would have to lay its hands on him. The PDM chief rejected Imran Khan’s claim that he was toppled through a conspiracy hatched by the United States. “America brought you (to power) but did not remove you,” he said.

PML-N leader Maryam Nawaz also launched a verbal attack on the three-member bench of the Supreme Court, saying that their verdict was simply meant to benefit the ladla (blue-eyed one) – a term she had repeatedly used to describe the PTI chief.

She said that if a full bench of the apex court would have been formed on the demand of the government, it would have become difficult for the bench to give such a verdict. “Justice murdered in the decision,” she added.

“When the verdict came, I thought to myself ‘what you have done, chief justice?’. No one can insult the court from outside but this happened from within,” she said, adding that legislation was not the responsibility of the judiciary.

“If it is so, then lock up the parliament,” Maryam said.

She asked how three members, who always remained part of benches that gave decisions against PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif, could give a verdict against the Constitution. “We will not accept this decision,” she insisted.

Published in Dawn, July 29th, 2022