LHC provisionally allows Raja to contest elections
19 April, 2013
LAHORE: A full bench of the Lahore High Court on Thursday, while suspending the order of an election tribunal, provisionally allowed former prime minister Raja Pervez Ashraf to contest election general election from NA-51 Gojar Khan.
The bench directed the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) to provisionally include Raja Pervez's name in voters' list subject to the decision of the present petition. It also issued notice to the ECP for April 22. The returning officer (RO) had rejected Raja Pervez's papers after Raja Irfan Aziz, a relative of the ex-premier and a political rival, alleged that Raja Pervez had misused discretionary funds in his constituency.
The nomination papers were rejected on the basis of awarding a contract to the National Logistics Cell (NLC), for involvement in the rental power projects case and in a contempt of court case for writing a letter to the Supreme Court.
On an appeal, an election tribunal comprising Justice Rauf Ahmad Sheikh and Justice Mamoon Rashid of the Lahore High Court, Rawalpindi Bench upheld the RO's decision. Meanwhile, a full bench of the Lahore High Court on Thursday directed the petitioner to produce until Friday (today) the copy of a US court order passed against Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf chief Imran Khan. A voter, Amina Khan, had challenged the acceptance of nomination papers of Imran Khan for National Assembly seat NA-122, Lahore.
The Sindh High Court has rejected former military ruler Pervez Musharraf's appeal against disqualification by returning officer and election tribunal. Musharraf's nomination papers from NA-250 Karachi had been rejected by the returning officer. The former president challenged the rejection in high court's election tribunal which upheld the RO's decision and dismissed his appeal.
Separately, the SHC overruled election tribunal's (ET) decision and allowed Pakistan People's Party's (PPP) former minister Syed Murad Ali Shah to contest election from PS-73 Dadu. The ET had declared Murad Shah ineligible for contesting elections over his dual nationality. Also, the SHC has conditionally allowed Nadir Magsi to contest elections from PS-40 and NA-206, while Dr Nasrullah Baloch has been allowed to contest general polls from PS-1 Sukkur.
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