Dar eligible to take oath after SC dismisses disqualification plea

SC says neither petitioner nor Dar appeared before court

ISLAMABAD:

The Supreme Court on Tuesday dismissed a petition against senior Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader Ishaq Dar that sought his disqualification from the Senate for being an absconder in the corruption cases against him.

During the hearing, Justice Ijazul Ahsan said petitioner Nawazish Peerzada failed to appear before the court, whereas Dar has also been a no-show since the start of the proceedings. Therefore, the court was dismissing the petition.

After today's ruling, the notification for Dar's victory will be issued and he will be bound to take oath within 60 days as per the new ordinance issued by the government earlier this year.

In 2018, the apex court had suspended the notification of Dar's election through its order dated May 8. However, the SC order barring him to take the oath was also withdrawn along with the dismissal of the plea.

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Dar was elected as a senator on a technocrat seat from Punjab in 2018, but he didn't take his oath owing to his stay in London on health grounds.

However, on May 8, 2018, a three-judge bench led by former chief justice Mian Saqib Nisar suspended his membership over his failure to appear in court despite repeated summons.

Subsequently, PML-N Senator Ishaq Dar, to avoid disqualification, had informed the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) that he was ready to take oath as a member of the upper house of parliament but the only hurdle in doing so was a Supreme Court suspension order of May 2018.