IHC also admits plea seeking Faisal Vawda’s disqualification

Petitioner argues federal minister submitted a false affidavit before the election commission

ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Tuesday admitted a plea seeking disqualification of Minister for Water Resources Faisal Vawda for allegedly lying to the polls supervisory body ahead of July 2018 general election.

Last week a news report revealed that the minister was a US national at the time of filing his nomination papers – on June 11, 2018 – and applied for renunciation of his US nationality a week after – on June 18 – after the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) accepted his nomination papers.

Pakistani law prohibits a dual national from contesting election unless he gives up his secondary nationality. The apex court has already disqualified two lawmakers, Haroon Akhtar and Saadia Abbasi, for holding dual nationalities at the time of filing papers to the ECP.
According to sources, Vawda had a US passport No 530572047 when he filed his nomination papers.

The petitioner, Mian Mohmmad Faisal, maintained that Vawda “contested the election of National Assembly while submitting false declaration and hiding his dual nationality” which makes him “liable to be disqualified under the Constitution and law of the land”.

He argued that Vawda held dual nationality at the time of filing his nomination papers to contest the July 28, 2018 polls; hence, he is not Sadiq and Ameen – honest and trustworthy – and should be removed from the position.

Vawda won the National Assembly seat from Karachi’s NA-249 constituency against PML-N President Shehbaz Sharif and was later included in the cabinet of Prime Minister Imran Khan as a federal minister.

ECP admits plea seeking Vawda's disqualification over 'false affidavit'

On January 25, the ECP also admitted an application, seeking Vawda’s disqualification on similar grounds. The commission, while issuing notices to all respondents, fixed the case for hearing on February 3.
Some days back, district and sessions judge in Karachi had also issued notices to South Karachi SSP and Mithadar SHO over a plea seeking registration of a case against Vawda.
The petitioner, PPP leader Qadir Khan Mandokhel, maintained that Vawda used ‘non-parliamentary’ language when speaking about Senator Javed Abbasi in a television show on January 14, while also placing a “boot” on the table.
After the antic, the minister was banned by the PTI chairman, Prime Minister Imran Khan, from appearing on TV for two weeks.