PTI, PML-Q to move SC against LHC order

ISLAMABAD/LAHORE:

The PTI and PML-Q on Thursday decided to move the top court against the Lahore High Court’s decision earlier in the day to declare the election of PML-N’s Hamza Shehbaz as Punjab chief minister void and ordering a recount of votes excluding the dissidents of ex-premier Imran Khan’s party.

This was announced by PTI Chairman Imran while addressing a seminar  in Islamabad.

Earlier, PML-Q leader and Punjab Assembly Speaker Chaudhry Parvez Elahi – who lost the election for the Punjab’s top slot to Hamza on April 16 -- consulted his legal team headed by Advocate Ali Zafar and preparation of a petition to be filed in the Supreme Court had already been started.

It was informed during the consultation that five members of the PTI had gone to perform Hajj while six members were abroad. There were many constitutional and legal ambiguities in the high court’s decision, the meeting was informed.
It was decided in the meeting that legal points would be placed before the top court.

Similarly, PTI leader and former federal minister Fawad Chaudhry said his party would approach the Supreme Court against the LHC ruling on Hamza’s election as the Punjab chief minister.

Read PTI to approach SC against LHC's Hamza Shahbaz ruling

The former minister claimed that the LHC's ruling was flawed and the decision had further aggravated the ongoing political crisis in the province.

“The government has not survived, but the solution that has been given will not end the crisis,” he said.

Fawad added that a legal committee had been convened to discuss the “flaws” of the ruling.

The LHC also admitted the PTI’s petitions challenging the CM's election for hearing.

The PTI, in their writ petitions, had stated that Hamza’s election in the Punjab Assembly was “illegal”, did not follow due processes, and that his notification as the chief of Punjab must also be set aside as it was not in line with the law. A third petition pleaded that Hamza’s oath-taking be declared illegal.

PML-N leader Atta Tarar along with other party leaders told the media outside the LHC that his party enjoyed a numerical majority in the re-election of the Punjab chief minister.

“Hamza Shehbaz will easily be re-elected as chief minister tomorrow [Friday], “ he maintained.

The PML-N leader further said the LHC had passed the order in the context of the Supreme Court's interpretation of Article 63A, under which it ruled that votes against the party's direction would not be counted.

Tarar claimed that the LHC had neither annulled the election nor ordered a new poll.

“It has ordered a re-election by excluding the votes of only 25 members.”

He said that it was stipulated in the Constitution that if someone could not receive a simple majority of 146 in the election of the chief minister, then the polling would be held again.

Read Lawyers conclude arguments on Hamza’s oath-taking

“The decision also states that Hamza will remain the chief minister till tomorrow [Friday] evening and a new election will be held then.”

The PML-N leader said half the people were happy with the verdict and half the people were sad.

“They don’t understand what the decision is.”

Tarar pointed out that the court order stated that action would be taken against anyone who obstructed the election. “They will be sentenced to six months imprisonment,"  he claimed, adding that his party would file contempt of court proceedings if that happened.

The PML-N leader said that the deputy speaker would convene the meeting as Speaker  Elahi himself was a candidate for the post of the chief minister. “No member can break away and go to another party and the election will be held on the basis of the number listed in the papers,” he added. “We have a clear lead of nine votes.”