Punjab heats up as legal impasse over CM election persists

LAHORE:

With Punjab Governor Omer Sarfraz Cheema red-flagging Hamza Shehbaz’s elevation to the coveted post of the chief minister, troubling questions have led the power struggle to head to the courts for answers – yet again.

A day after the governor refused to administer the oath to the new leader of the house, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) on Monday decided to approach the Lahore High Court (LHC) to end the legal impasse.

A petition has also been drafted in this regard which will be filed in the LHC today, praying the court to issue directions for the swearing-in ceremony of the chief minister-elect as soon as possible.

The move comes as the crises surrounding the election for the province’s chief executive and the uncertainty over command hierarchy refuse to die down.

‘Sacked’ governor continues in office

The newly-elected government faced another hitch in exercising its powers when in another development on Monday President Dr Arif Alvi allowed the “sacked” governor to continue to hold the office.

According to a statement, the Punjab governor would continue to serve till the decision on a summary for his removal was taken.

Contrary to the PML-N’s stance, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has claimed that the president had not yet received any summary from the prime minister for the removal of Cheema.

PML-Q to challenge CM elections

Meanwhile, Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q) also decided to move the courts to challenge the election of Hamza Shehbaz as the chief minister.

The decision was taken during a meeting of the PML-Q and PTI parliamentary parties which was chaired by Elahi.

Addressing meeting participants, Elahi said that “a bogus, unconstitutional and controversial” election for the office of Punjab chief minister was held in the provincial assembly on April 16.

“Punjab governor and advocate-general have already declared this election controversial as entire assembly proceedings for this election were not in accordance with law hence election results could not be acknowledged till the situation gets clear,” he added.

He pointed out that Mazari held the chief minister’s election in the gallery, which has no constitutional value.

“Anyone with a megaphone can hold polls in the guests' gallery,” he said and added that the PML-N can find a fake governor to administer the oath to their "fake chief minister".

He said the party has summoned a meeting of constitutional experts in which the strategy to challenge the election of the chief minister will be formulated. In past, this party had attacked courts and now they ambushed the Punjab Assembly.

Meanwhile, in another decision, PML-Q leader Elahi also took the matter of a brawl at the provincial legislature to a district court in contradiction to his earlier stance that “the courts could not intervene in assembly’s business” in a legal battle with Deputy Speaker Sardar Dost Muhammad Mazari.

Elahi on Monday approached the district court, seeking registration of a first information report (FIR) against Hamza Shehbaz, his fifteen MPAs and other officials in bureaucracy for allegedly attacking him and his party MPAs on April 16 during a clash between opposition and treasury benches lawmakers.

Elahi told the court that Qilla Gujar Singh police were not registering FIR against the aforementioned accused who allegedly thrashed their male and female MPAs.

He prayed the court to direct the respondent SHO to register FIR against the aforementioned individuals.

'Punjab governor can't decline oath'

Meanwhile, the principal secretary to governor, however, has written to Cheema that the assembly secretary’s report had been found one-sided, biased and politically motivated and added that he (the secretary) had no power under any provision of the Constitution, the law or the Rules of the Punjab Assembly 1997 to call into question the declaration of the result by the Deputy Speaker, who was duly authorised by the Lahore High Court to conduct the election for the office of chief minister.

The principal secretary asserted that no power was vested in the governor under the Constitution or any law to set aside the election on any grounds whatsoever.