Nawaz`s Disqualifi-
cation!!!
24 June, 2008
On Monday 23 June, 2008, a three-member bench of the Lahore High Court disqualified PML-N Chief Nawaz Sharif from contesting the by-election while provisionally allowing his younger brother Mian Shahbaz Sharif to continue working as the Punjab chief minister.
Announcing a unanimous short order, the bench, comprising Justice Abdul Shakoor Parracha, Justice Syed Shabbar Raza Rizvi and Justice M Bilal Khan, referred the petition against Shahbaz to the Election Commission of Pakistan to constitute an election tribunal to decide his eligibility. However, the bench turned down the request of the petitioner to bar Shahbaz Sharif from holding his office.
Earlier on May 5, an election tribunal, comprising two judges of the LHC, had given a split decision on the objections against the Sharif brothers. Noor Elahi, an independent candidate from the NA-123, Lahore, moved the petition against Nawaz Sharif. A freelance journalist, Shahid Orakzai, and a voter, Syed Khurram Shah, filed a petition challenging the unopposed victory of Shahbaz Sharif from the PP-48, Bhakkar, and his candidature for the PP-10, Rawalpindi.
The objections raised against the candidature of Nawaz Sharif included that an Anti-Terrorism Court of Karachi, under section 402-B of the PPC read with section 7 of the ATA, had awarded him life imprisonment and a fine of Rs 500,000.
His conviction and sentence was upheld by an appellate court in a special criminal appeal. Besides, he was convicted by an accountability court, Attock Fort, in reference No 2 of 2002, decided on July 2007, under section 10 read with Section 9-A (V) of the NAB Ordinance and sentenced to rigorous imprisonment for 14 years and a fine of Rs 20 million.
The accountability court had also declared Nawaz Sharif disqualified for 21 years from seeking or being elected, chosen, appointed as member or representative of any public office or any authority.
According to the petitioners, convictions of the former prime minister were still intact because they had not been set aside by any court of law till date and it was a settled law that only sentence awarding punishment was pardoned, reprieved, remitted, suspended or commuted, but the conviction remained intact.
Do you agree with such decision against Nawaz Sharif?
what do you think about Nawaz Future in Pakistan`s Politics?
After Nawaz`s disqualification, will the Coalition with PPP remain stronger or not?
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