PESHAWAR: A Peshawar High Court election tribunal on Monday dismissed petitions against the election of three MNAs and six MPAs on July 25 declaring them non-maintainable on technical grounds.

Justice Mussarat Hilali announced the rejection of the nine petitions under Section 145 of the Elections Act, 2017, observing that the petitioners didn’t fulfil the legal requirements to file petitions.

Three petitions were filed by the losing candidates against MNAs, including PTI’s Jawad Hussain from NA-47 Orakzai tribal district, JUI-F’s Abdul Shakoor from NA- 51 tribal Frontier Regions, and independent MNA Mohsin Javed Dawar from NA- 48 North Waziristan tribal district, while six challenged the election of MPAs, including senior minister Atif Khan from PK-50 Mardan, PML-N’s Jamshed Khan Mohmand from PK-55 Mardan, and PTI’s Khalid Khan from PK-56 Charsadda, Tufail Anjum from PK-49 Mardan, Mohammad Arif from PK-60 Charsadda and Jamsheduddin Kakakhel from PK-63 Nowshera.

However, the tribunal accepted as maintainable for hearing the petitions filed against the election of three MNAs, including federal minister Noorul Haq Qadri from NA-43 Khyber tribal district, former chief minister Amir Haider Hoti from NA-21 Mardan, and PTI’s Sajid Khan from NA-42 Mohmand tribal district, after rejecting objections to them.

Declares pleas non-maintainable, accepts three others for hearing

The petitions are filed by losing candidates Haji Shah Jee Gul Afridi, provincial minister Mohammad Atif Khan and Bilal Rehman respectively.

In the petitions, which were dismissed by the tribunal, lawyers Shumail Ahmad Butt, Ijaz Khan Sabi, Abdul Samad Khan, Qazi Jawad Ahsanullah and Arshad Nowsherwi appeared for the winning election candidates, while advocates Farmanullah Khattak and Nasir Mehmood Khattak defended the Election Commission of Pakistan.

The counsel for the winning candidates contended that the petitions against their clients’ election were not maintainable as mandatory provisions of the Elections Act 2017 weren’t followed during their filing.

They said under Section 143 of the Act, the petitioners should join all contesting candidates as respondents in their petitions and should produce a copy of the election petition with all annexure on each of the respondents.

The counsel said under Section 144 of the Act, the petitions should include a precise statement of the material facts on which the petitioner relied, and full particulars of any corrupt or illegal practice alleged to have been committed, including names of the parties, who were alleged to have committed such corrupt or illegal practice.

They said there were several documents mentioned in the law which should be attached with the election petition including complete lists of witnesses and their statements on affidavits; documentary evidence relied upon by the petitioner; relief claimed by the petitioner; affidavits of service to the effect that a copy of the petition along with copies of annexure had been sent to all the respondents by registered post or courier service.

The lawyers said an election petition and all its annexure should be signed by the petitioner and should be verified in the manner provided in the Code of Civil Procedure.

They said some petitioners didn’t properly verify their petitions and didn’t sign each and every annexure, while in certain cases, the petitioners didn’t provide copies of the petitions and annexure to all respondents.

The counsel also said several required documents weren’t annexed with the petitions.

They said under Section 145 of the Act, if any of the relevant provision wasn’t complied with, the election tribunal should summarily reject the election petition.

The lawyers for the petitioners contended that the petitions could not be dismissed merely on the ground of some minor flaws.

The petitioners had challenged the election of their rival candidates on multiple grounds.

In some cases, they sought re-counting of all votes insisting that the votes were not properly counted by the relevant presiding and returning officers.

Published in Dawn, November 27th, 2018