ISLAMABAD, Oct 14: The Supreme Court on Tuesday issued fresh notices to Nawaz Sharif and Chief Minister Punjab Shahbaz Sharif on government’s appeals against their disqualification.
A three-member bench comprising Justice Moosa K Leghari, Justice Syed Zawwar Hussain Jaffery and Justice Sheikh Hakim Ali had taken up the appeals of the federal government against the Lahore High Court (LHC) order of disqualifying Nawaz Sharif from the by-election but kept pending a separate petition against the candidature of Shahbaz Sharif until an election tribunal decided about his nomination.
Ahmad Raza Kasuri, counsel for Syed Khurram Shah in one of the petotions, told Dawn that fresh notices were issued for November 12, when Advocate General Punjab Khawaja Haris requested the bench to repeat the notices since the earlier had not been received by the respondents and provided their exact addresses.
Sardar Muhammad Latif Khosa, Attorney General of Pakistan, told the court that many important questions of law regarding the locus standi of the federation had to be decided as, he added, Nawaz Sharif was a twice elected prime minister.
Mr Kasuri expressed his surprise over the arguments being advanced that both the respondents had failed to receive notices, saying both were well known personalities and that there should be no question of not receiving the notices.He argued that both the respondents wanted to secure and seek justice indirectly instead of coming directly to the court especially at a time when the courts were fully functional.
“Its now time for them to come forward and seek assistance of the court for a just conclusion of the matter,” he said.
The Lahore High Court (LHC) had barred Nawaz Sharif from taking part in the elections on the pleas from rivals that he was convicted of kidnapping attempt and corruption charges.
Similarly, in a case regarding the eligibility of Shahbaz Sharif, a two-member bench of the LHC had given a split verdict and the matter was referred to the Applet Tribunal by the chief election commissioner.
On June 24, the federal government filed appeals with the Supreme Court against the LHC order of disqualifying PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif from contesting the by-election and referring the challenge to the candidature of Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif to an election tribunal.
The Supreme Court on June 25 had stayed by-elections in NA-123 Lahore until the federation’s petition against the verdict of the LHC is decided.