PESHAWAR, March 10: The Peshawar High Court on Wednesday reserved its judgment on four identical writ petitions filed against barring women from casting votes in the local government elections held in 2001.

A two-member bench comprising Justice Shahjehan Khan and Justice Ijaz Afzal heard arguments of both sides for two days. Appearing for the petitioners, advocate Qazi Muhammad Jamil contended that disfranchizing women was violative of fundamental rights guaranteed in the constitution and judgments of the superior court.

He said the court would be delivering a landmark judgment if it declared the polls in those union councils null and void where women were barred from casting votes.

Barrister Masood Kausar, also representing a petitioner, argued that agreements between political parties and candidates were of no legal effect as these were illegal and against the fundamental rights. He requested the court to declare those agreements as well as elections in those constituencies illegal.

Initially, a writ petition was filed by Qazi Jamil on behalf of the Aurat Foundation in which two voters - Bukht Zarina and Mashooq Zari, belonging to the Bamkhela Union Council in Swabi - had claimed that women had been barred from casting votes in the union council.

Ms Zarina and Ms Zari had said the candidates and political parties had entered into an agreement following which women were barred from casting votes. They had urged the court to declare elections in that union council null and void.

Later, some other women from different union councils in Peshawar and Mardan districts also filed identical petitions. Also a former attorney-general, Qazi Jamil argued that the act of the respondents had violated Article 17(3) of the Constitution, which guaranteed freedom of association.

Referring to a Supreme Court decision in the Benazir Bhutto case in 1989, the lawyer said the apex court had ruled that freedom of association included freedom to contest and participate in elections.

He contended that in the Nawaz Sharif case of 1993 the Supreme Court again gave the same observation. He said that barring women from contesting and participating in elections was also violative of Article 25 which guaranteed equality of citizens.

The bench asked Qazi Jamil how he would prove that women had been stopped from casting votes. The lawyer replied that all the agreements reached among candidates were on record and the respondents could not deny that.

He pointed out in the Bamkhela union council not a single woman vote was cast which, he added, proved that an agreement had taken place between the candidates. He sought disqualification of such candidates.

The petitioners' counsel informed the bench that local bodies by-elections would be held on March 28 and once again different parties had signed agreements for barring women from contesting and participating in the polls.

He requested the court to deliver a judgment which could help the 50 per cent of the population to take part in the election process.