Challenge to tribunal: LHC to hear plea against NA-122 vote recount

Ayaz Sadiq is also seeking contempt proceedings against the judge.

LAHORE:

Justice Ijazul Ahsan of Lahore High Court (LHC) will take up Speaker National Assembly Sardar Ayaz Sadiq’s two pleas today, one challenging the election tribunal’s order for recount of votes in NA-122 and the second seeking contempt proceedings against tribunal judge, Kazim Ali Malik.

The petitioner has contended that the verdict of the tribunal is in violation of the Supreme Court’s judgment.

The speaker’s plea is that according to the apex court judgment the tribunal had to decide first the maintainability of the petition filed in the election commission by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) but the tribunal judge handed in the verdict first rather than deciding maintainability of the application.

In the writ petition, the petitioner submitted that the affidavit, which was filed by PTI chief Imran Khan before the tribunal, was not attested and signed by the oath commissioner. Secondly, the testimonies of the six witnesses are fake as they did not know whether they were on duty that day or not.

It may be mentioned that a few days ago the election tribunal had issued a detailed verdict observing that around 10 policemen would be needed to provide 24-hour security to ensure the poll record was not tampered with before or during inspection.

The tribunal’s judgment comes after around a year-and-half of proceedings. The case, which was taken up on PTI chairman Imran Khan’s plea, was inordinately delayed after Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) MNA Sardar Ayaz Sadiq, who won the NA-122 seat, obtained a stay order from the LHC. The LHC dismissed Sadiq’s plea on November 20, allowing the tribunal to finally proceed with the case. Accepting Imran’s plea, the tribunal judge, Kazim Ali Malik, also constituted a one-man commission comprising former additional district and sessions judge Ghulam Hussain Awan to carry out the inspection.

The commission will submit an audit report to the tribunal after examining the NA-122 poll records. Awan has also been asked to look into the 54 ballot bags from PP-147 which had gone missing.

Among the various tasks it will carry out as part of the inspection, the commission will check the result provided by the RO against the number of polled votes inside the bags. The ballot papers will be verified against their respective counterfoils.

The commission is likely to submit its report within next two or three weeks.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 16^th, 2014.