ROs reserve rulings on Bilawal, Imran’s nominations

Returning officers (ROs) overseeing two Lahore constituencies kept their decisions pending on Thursday regarding challenges to the nomination papers of Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan.

This process is part of the ongoing scrutiny of nomination papers initiated on Monday and set to continue until Saturday. Over 28,600 nomination papers filed last week for the February 8 elections are scheduled for examination during this week-long exercise.

On Wednesday, objections were raised against the nomination papers of Bilawal for NA-127, Lahore, Imran for NA-122, Lahore, and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Chief Organiser Maryam Nawaz for a provincial assembly seat of PP-80.

In NA-122, during a Thursday hearing, Imran’s lawyer admitted to the RO that the seconder of PTI’s founder did not belong to the NA-122 constituency. However, the lawyer emphasized that this discrepancy was unintentional and attributed it to the recent delimitation of constituencies.

Read RO rejects PTI leader’s nomination papers

The RO's chamber was filled with PTI’s legal representatives. Main counsel Muhammad Azhar Siddique and Rai Muhammad Ali reiterated that objections raised by PML-N’s Mian Naseer were not valid. Naseer had also objected that Imran could not contest due to his conviction in the Toshakhana case.

Naseer’s counsel argued that although Imran's sentence had been suspended by the Islamabad High Court, his disqualification still stood. The RO queried Siddique about any court suspension of the notification regarding Imran’s disqualification, to which the lawyer promised to provide details shortly.

Regarding the issue of Imran's seconder, Rai Muhammad Ali argued that both the seconder and proposer belonged to the NA-122 constituency, highlighting that the constituency boundaries changed after December 15, following the Election Commission of Pakistan's (ECP) announcement of its schedule.

Advocate Azhar Siddique proposed replacing the seconder, and after arguments from both sides, the RO reserved the decision on Imran's nomination papers. The decision is expected to be announced on December 30, the last day of the scrutiny period.

Read RO accepts Nawaz's nomination papers for NA-130 Lahore

In NA-127, the RO heard arguments on objections to Bilawal's nomination papers by citizen Muhammad Ayyaz. Ayyaz contended that Bilawal had indicated his association with PPP-Parliamentarian in the nomination papers while holding the position of the PPP chairman.

Bilawal’s counsel Irfan Qadir and Iftikhar Shahid argued that the objector was not a resident of the constituency where Bilawal was contesting. They also emphasized an agreement between the two parties to contest elections from the same platform. Additionally, they pointed out legal provisions that restrict the RO from rejecting nomination papers on certain grounds.

After hearing the arguments, the RO reserved the ruling. In another part of the country, the RO for NA-15, Mansehra, approved the nomination paper of PML-N leader and former prime minister Nawaz Sharif. This decision followed arguments on objections raised by PTI’s candidate Azam Swati, who cited Nawaz's previous disqualification by the Supreme Court for corruption under Article 62(1)(f) of the Constitution. 

(WITH INPUT FROM OUR PESHAWAR CORRESPONDENT)