ISLAMABAD: Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) leader Farooq Sattar on Tuesday said that the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) should not rule on the issue of dual national lawmakers until the Supreme Court issued a detailed judgment on the case, DawnNews reported.

Sattar discussed the issue of dual national lawmakers with Chief Election Commissioner Fakhruddin G. Ebrahim in Islamabad.

Sources told DawnNews that Sattar said he was visiting the election commission as Federal Minister for Overseas Pakistanis.

He requested the election commissioner to not proceed on the matter of dual national legislators until the Supreme Court issued a detailed judgment in the case.

Sattar said the MQM would also file a review petition over the apex court's verdict in the case against dual national lawmakers.

Verdict against dual national lawmakers

On Sept 20, the Supreme Court had disqualified 11 members of parliament and provincial assemblies, but had spared Malik for the time being. The only sentence Malik received for submitting a false declaration was a court observation that he could not be considered sagacious, righteous, honest and ameen.

However, like other lawmakers, the minister will be facing legal proceedings by the election commission which may entail a punishment of up to seven years and also require him to reimburse all monetary benefits drawn by him up to July 11, 2012, for the period he occupied the public office.