Supreme Court dismisses PML-N lawmaker’s appeal


Express June 16, 2010

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court dismissed the appeal of former PML-N MPA Rizwan Gill in a fake degree case. The three-member bench hearing the case has also asked the Election Commission of Pakistan to launch criminal proceedings against the ex-lawmaker from Sargodha for holding a fake Bachelor’s degree.

Gill’s troubles began in February 2008, when his political opponent Dr Nadia Aziz of the PPP challenged his election from PP 34 in the Lahore High Court. Aziz said Gill’s degree was a fake and that the Controller’s Office of the Punjab University had confirmed this, saying another person had taken the exam on Gill’s behalf.

On May 28 this year, the Lahore High Court had disqualified Gill from holding a seat in the provincial legislature and had asked the Chief Election Commission to register a case against Gill as well as the person who sat the exam in Gill’s stead. The CEC had also been asked to conduct fresh elections in the constituency.

But Gill decided to prefer an appeal against the LHC verdict and engaged eminent lawyer Akram Sheikh for a reported Rs3 million.

During the proceedings, Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry, who was heading the bench, said the process of entering the Parliament using forgery should end. “I am ashamed such representatives are sitting in the assemblies,” scolded Justice Khalilur Rehman Ramday, when Gill failed to name a single subject he’d supposedly scored 70 per cent marks in.

The apex court directed the Election Commission to strictly implement rules and regulations to debar such people from contesting elections. “In the Jamshed Dasti case, we established the principle that it was also the responsibility of the returning officer to identify fake degree holders,” observed the bench.

Dismissing Gill’s appeal, the court has imposed a fine on him and asked the ECP to initiate criminal proceedings.

Published in the Express Tribune, June 16th, 2010.

COMMENTS (1)

Sultan Ahmed | 13 years ago | Reply fake degree, fake representation, and fake qualification, what have done the apex court, justice has done removed fabrication from the record of the democratic system.
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