ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court on Thursday accepted the plea of PTI candidate Sanaullah Masti Khel and allowed him to contest the Feb 8 general elections from NA-91, Bhakkar.

A three-judge SC bench headed by Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa allowed the plea despite opposition by the ECP that the polling material has been finalised and even plates for printing ballot papers were ready. The top court, however, ordered the ECP to add the name of the candidate to the ballot papers.

The bench had taken up an appeal moved by Sanaullah Masti Khel, who earlier had been elected member of the National Assembly as well as the provincial assembly from Bhakkar. The appeal had challenged the Lahore High Court, Multan bench’s decision, which had upheld the rejection of the petitioner’s nomination papers by the returning officer (RO) concerned.

When the director general of law, Muhammad Arshad, opposed the idea of granting relief to the petitioner, Justice Musarrat Hilali wondered how everything could be finalised when several measures before the elections were still to be done.

Apex court to take up today Sanam Javaid’s plea against rejection of her candidature

CJP Isa asked whether the ECP was trying to establish that the decision of RO was final.

Justice Hilali also wondered what the hurry was for the high court to dismiss the election tribunal’s decision. “In a single day the case was heard and decided when the court could have adjourned the matter for the next day.”

When the court was told that Sanaullah Masti Khel had been declared a proclaimed offender, the CJP wondered what crime he had committed and whether he was involved in a terrorism case or a kidnapping for ransom case.

Justice Hilali, however, said that the petitioner was charged with burning of tyres while Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar observed that Masti Khel was on bail but not a proclaimed offender.

Meanwhile, a three-judge SC bench consisting of Justice Munib Akhtar, Justice Shahid Waheed and Justice Irfan Saadat Khan will take up on Friday (today) the plea of PTI activist Sanam Javaid Khan, who had moved a set of appeals against rejection of her candidature from the National Assembly constituencies NA-119 and NA-120 and the Punjab Assembly seat PP-150, all in Lahore.

Moved through Advocate Shahzib Masud, she had requested the court to overturn the rejection of her nomination papers. Her nomination papers were rejected by the RO on Dec 29, 2023. Consequently, the petitioner moved the appeal before the election tribunal, which was also dismissed. Later the petitioner filed appeals with the Lahore High Court, which were also dismissed.

The petition before the SC pleaded that the high court had erred in law by disqualifying the petitioner on grounds other than those provided in Articles 62 and 63 of the Constitution.

By adding further grounds for disqualification, the high court had effectively amended the Constitution by adding supplementary grounds of disqualification, the petition said, adding that the high court, the election tribunal as well as the RO have failed to appreciate that the petitioner had been in the lock-up for the last eight months and due to her confinement, she was not in a position to open her fresh bank account and, therefore, she provided her existing account as per law for bearing election expenses.

Published in Dawn, January 26th, 2024