LAHORE, Dec 23: Nawaz Sharif cannot contest any election or cannot be a candidate for any public office for life because of his conviction in the hijacking case, according to Attorney-General Malik Mohammad Qayyum.

“He cannot contest any election for life. He is permanently disqualified,” the attorney-general said while talking to Dawn on Sunday.

About Shahbaz Sharif’s eligibility, Mr Qayyum said that although he was not a convict, there were cases pending against him.

Nomination papers of both the brothers were rejected by the returning officers. Instead of filing appeals before the Election Tribunal, they approached the Chief Election Commissioner twice, requesting him to review the returning officer’s decision. The CEC directed them to file appeals with the election tribunal. However, the Sharif brothers refused to contact the tribunal, saying they would not file their appeals before any forum working under the Provisional Constitution Order.

Political analysts say that the Sharifs may take part in by-elections after the polls. However, the two brothers are not clear about their future course of action, although they insist that they will stick to their “principled stand”.

Asked what would the former prime minister have to do to become eligible to contest elections, Mr Qayyum said either the laws which barred convicts from taking part in elections should be amended or his conviction should be set aside.

He said under Article 45 of the Constitution, the president was empowered to pardon a convict. However, he said, he did not think that the matter would be reopened after so many years.

He clarified that the then president Rafiq Tarar had granted a remission to Mr Sharif, but the sentence and the fine were still applicable.

However, he declined to comment what course of action should be taken by Shahbaz Sharif to qualify for elections. “This is for their legal advisers to decide. As an attorney-general, I am supposed to defend the president’s decisions and block the Sharifs’ return to the electoral process.”