PTI moves LHC to get RO’s attested rejection orders

Hammad Azhar says nomination papers of 700 candidates rejected

LAHORE:

The problems which the PTI contestants earlier faced in submitting their nomination papers and filing objections against the PML-N candidates seem to have multiplied as they have not been given the attested copies of their nomination papers’ rejection orders for filing appeals before the election tribunals.

The complaints were not only filed with the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) but also before the Lahore High Court (LHC) seeking directions to the concerned ROs to hand them the attested copies of those orders so that they could file appeals.

A petition of a different nature was also filed in the LHC wherein the petitioner (also a PTI candidate for NA-130) revealed that his nomination papers were rejected without any objection, adding that he had been given the punishment for demanding the nomination papers of PML-N’s Nawaz Sharif against whom he wanted to file objections.

Different petitions filed in the LHC also include the plea filed by former Punjab chief minister Chaudhry Parvez Elahi’s wife Qaisara Elahi who challenged the conduct of the ROs for not granting them the attested copies of the rejection orders.

She claimed that the attested copes of the rejection orders of nomination papers, including those of Parvez Elahi and their son, Moonis Elahi, are not being handed over to them.

She contended in her plea that their family’s nomination papers were rejected from NA-64 Gujrat, NA-69 Mandi Bahauddin, PP-32, 34 and 42 by the ROs but they were not being given the attested copies of the ROs decisions which means they were being hindered from filing appeals at the election tribunals.

Read also: Dozens of PTI aspirants appeal against papers rejection

She submitted that appeals could be filed at election tribunals till Jan 3.

Petitioner Ishtiaq Ahmad in his petition drew court’s attention that the RO of NA-130 constituency had first denied giving him the copy of nomination papers of Nawaz when he disclosed before him that he wanted to file objections against the PML-N Quaid. After the RO’s refusal, he had to file a sole objection that Nawaz’s nomination papers could not be accepted in presence of lifetime disqualification held by the country’s top court.

Interestingly, the RO also refused to give him the receiving of the objection. Astonishing enough that till the last date of displaying the list of cleared candidates, the RO reiterated that there was no objection filed against him (petitioner) by anyone. But it was shocking to him that his name was excluded from the list and the name of Nawaz had been included. He requested the LHC to set aside the RO’s order excluding his name and including Nawaz’s name and reject the nomination papers of Nawaz owing to permanent lifetime disqualification.

An ECP official seeking anonymity told The Express Tribune that the impression was absolutely correct. “We received a lot of complaints about such delaying tactics.” However, he admitted that if contesters were complaining that they were being restrained from filing appeals at election tribunals then they were correct.

Meanwhile, the PTI issued a list of its candidates whose nomination papers had been rejected by ROs across Punjab.

PTI Central Punjab General Secretary and Acting Punjab President Hammad Azhar highlighted that nomination papers of as many as 700 PTI candidates had been rejected. He wrote on social media platform, X: “In a bizarre development, authorities in Pakistan have rejected nomination papers of 700 candidates belonging to largest political party, PTI. This is being done to favour one Nawaz Sharif who is favourite of the regime but unpopular amongst the people.”