LAHORE, Sept 4: Exiled prime minister Nawaz Sharif’s counsel claimed on Wednesday evening that Pakistan’s foreign secretary had directed the Middle East affairs director-general to get Nawaz’s power of attorney attested for withdrawal of his nomination papers from NA-121.

Counsel Ashtar Ausaf Ali confided to Dawn that he had received a telephone call from the Middle East Affairs director-general on Wednesday evening that he had been asked by the Pakistan government to make arrangements for the attestation of Nawaz’s power of attorney and Kulsoom Nawaz’s nomination papers.

He, however, said that according to his information the Sharif family in Jeddah had not yet received such an intimation.

He said the appeal against the rejection of Kulsoom Nawaz’s nomination papers for NA-120 would be filed before the election tribunal as soon as he received the attested nomination papers from the authorities concerned.

Earlier, he appeared before the returning officer for NA-121 and submitted an affidavit, saying that Nawaz Sharif had authorized him to withdraw his nomination papers from the constituency on his behalf. He showed his inability to present an authority letter from Nawaz Sharif on the grounds that Pakistan’s Consulate-General in Jeddah had refused to attest it.

Returning Officer Shaukat Iqbal refused to accept the affidavit attested by a local oath commissioner with an observation that only an authority letter signed by Nawaz Sharif in favour of his counsel could serve as the legal instrument for his withdrawal from NA-121.

The court further observed that nothing short of this authority letter could be accepted by it to allow Nawaz to withdraw his candidature just to ensure that the candidate himself had withdrawn his papers through a bonafide representation.

The defence counsel pleaded that the affidavit and a letter written to him by Nawaz Sharif for the withdrawal of his candidature on his behalf appended with the application were sufficient enough to establish Nawaz’s bonafide representation before the court.

He stated that Nawaz’s decision to withdraw his nomination papers as an expression of solidarity with Benazir Bhutto had been made public in print and electronic media and nobody could doubt that statement.

The court adjourned the decision on the application for Sept 6 with directions to counsel to produce an authority letter signed by Nawaz Sharif in favour of his counsel to withdraw his papers.

Nawaz’s papers for NA-120 had been withdrawn on Sunday last before the scrutiny. However, the physical presence of the candidate or the production of an authority letter duly signed by him was a must for the withdrawal of papers accepted by an RO. His papers had been cleared by the RO concerned on Aug 28.

Earlier, Ashtar Ausaf Ali told newsmen at press conference that the consulate in Jeddah had denied receiving the withdrawal of nomination papers of PML leader Nawaz Sharif from NA-121 for attestation.

He said the consulate’s denial of receiving the withdrawal of nomination papers “meant that it did not want to entertain the plea.”

He said that every Pakistani had a right to attestation from a consulate. But the consulate’s denial of receiving the nomination papers’ withdrawal was indicative of the ‘bad intentions’ of the government.

He said that Nawaz Sharif after the refusal had to apply to the returning officer for NA-121 to seek withdrawal of his papers through him.

He said that Nawaz told him by phone that he had also written about this to the foreign secretary. He said that the consulate had also denied receiving the power of attorney of Kulsoom Nawaz, required by a solicitor to file the appeal against the rejection of her nomination papers for NA-120.

Mr Ashter said that Nawaz’s decision of withdrawal of his nomination papers was as a mark of protest against the pre-poll rigging and an expression of solidarity with PPP chairperson Benazir Bhutto. He said that this decision had been made public through print and electronic media which was being made ambiguous by the government through these tactics. He said the ambiguity in delaying the withdrawal of nomination papers should be clear now.

Answering a question, he said the federal law minister’s statement that future parliament could make amendments to the Legal Framework Order (LFO) had been contradicted by the president.