ISLAMABAD, April 17: The Supreme Court Bar Association on Wednesday challenged the holding of referendum, bringing the number of such petitions to five in the apex court, which would be taken up on coming Monday by a bench of nine judges.

The Supreme Court also summoned the petition filed by Alliance for Restoration of Democracy from Lahore to Islamabad.

The Supreme Court Bar Association in its writ petition, impleaded Chief of Army Staff, Federal Government, and Election Commission as party.

The SCBA requested the apex court to declare the Election Order 2002 illegal, ultra vires and violative of the Supreme Court verdict in Syed Zafar Ali Shah case..

The petitioner counsel stated that referendum clause in the constitution was no substitution for the election of the president.

The petitioner stated that under the SC judgment, validating military take over, had empowered the military government to make only such laws which were not only in conflict with the provision of the constitution. The Referendum Order 2002, it stated, was designed to change the whole parliamentary structure of the Constitution.

It was further stated that Gen Pervez Musharraf is a government servant and was thus not qualified to contest election.