HYDERABAD, Feb 3: A division bench of the Sindh High Court, Hyderabad circuit, here on Friday issued notices to Shafiq Ahmed, the Taluka Naib Nazim Mirpurkhas, Engineer Nauman Ahmed, Returning Officer for Taluka Naib Nazim, Provincial Election Commissioner, Election Commission of Pakistan and Additional Advocate General Sindh on a constitutional petition, filed by one Malik Liaquat Ali, challenging election of the Taluka naib nazim.

The petitioner said that 18 members of the Taluka Council, Mirpurkhas, had attended the first meeting of the council on Dec 28 for holding elections of taluka naib nazim.

However, before elections, candidate Arshad Nawaz withdrew his candidature and three candidates including the petitioner and Nauman Ahmed and Shafiq Ahmed contested the election.

During first poll Nauman Ahmed got three, the petitioner eight and Shafiq Ahmed secured seven votes.

He quoted sub-rule (i) of Rule 53 of Sindh Local Government Elections Rules 2005 which says that “where no candidate secures the majority votes of total membership of council concerned, a fresh poll shall be taken in the same meeting where candidate securing lowest number of votes in first poll shall be excluded from the election and in like manner proceed until one candidate secures the majority vote of total membership of the council, who shall be declared to have been elected’.

Since there are 18 members, therefore, in view of provision of Sindh Local Government Election Rules, 2005,

Returning Officer did not declare result in view of above provisions because for the purpose of majority of votes, ten votes were required to be secured by a candidate for his declaration to be elected.

In the second poll, Shafiq Ahmed got eight votes and petitioner seven votes while three members did not cast votes.

The polls were held for the sixth consecutive times but none of contesting candidates including petitioner obtained majority of votes, forcing the RO to call for polls in the seventh meeting after Maghrib prayers.

The petitioner said that all 18 members attended seventh meeting but before holding of elections condition of Tanveer Ahmed Siddiqui and one Shahnaz Bano got deteriorated, rendering them unable to cast votes.

He added that both these members were his voters, therefore, he made an application before the RO to hold seventh meeting after break of two hours but it was rejected and then the RO declared Shafiq Ahmed as taluka naib nazim.

He said that RO acted illegally and declared result of election in violation of provisions of Sindh Local Government Elections Rules.

He said that according to his information, the Election Commission of Pakistan asked Provincial Election Commissioner to obtain report from RO adding that name of Shafiq Ahmed had not been notified by the Chief Election Commissioner as envisaged under section 164 of SLGO 2001.

He maintained that Election Commission issued a notification for taking oath of office of the newly-elected Taluka Naib Nazims of taluka councils in Sindh but in case of Mirpurkhas, taluka council name of respondent Shafiq Ahmed was not notified while specifically showing that “no one secured majority of total membership of the council”.