PM’s disqualification: ECP appears unsure if it can decide petitions

ISLAMABAD: The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) appears to be in two minds on whether or not it could adjudicate petitions seeking disqualification of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in the wake of the Panamagate scandal.

The top poll supervisory body, which took up four petitions filed by the PPP, PTI, Dr Tahirul Qadri’s Pakistan Awami Tehreek and Sheikh Rashid’s Awami Muslim League on Wednesday, adjourned the hearing till August 17 without deciding on their maintainability. It, however, dismissed PAT’s petition on the very first day of the hearing.

Dr Qadri’s counsel in his arguments focused on the June 17, 2014 Model Town tragedy where a number of PAT workers were killed in clashes with the police. The commission dismissed the PAT petition declaring the counsel’s arguments irrelevant.

Through these petitions, the three political parties have sought disqualification of Nawaz and his close relatives for not declaring their offshore money that has been revealed in the Panama Papers.

Besides the prime minister, his son-in-law Captain (retd) Muhammad Safdar, Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif and his son Hamza Shahbaz and Finance Minister Ishaq Dar are named as respondents in the petitions.

Filed in June amid much media hype, the petitions could not be heard for almost two months because the ECP had become non-functional with the retirement of its four members.

Legal experts believe the ECP is not an appropriate forum to hear such petitions.

In Wednesday’s hearing, the PPP was represented by two prominent lawyers -- Latif Khosa and Aitzaz Ahsan. Khosa spoke for over two hours to substantiate his point that the ECP ‘must’ adjudicate this matter.

He mentioned various clauses of the Representation of Peoples Act-1975 and Clause 3 of Article 218 of the Constitution to press the point that ECP’s role is “not limited to conducting fair elections, but also to guard against corrupt practices by elected representatives”.

Sheikh Rashid pleaded his case before the ECP himself. Recalling his election as a councillor, he said the ECP of that time had disqualified many councillors who defaulted on their electricity or gas bills.

The PTI’s counsel was giving his arguments when the proceedings were adjourned.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 4^th, 2016.