SC disposes of poll annulment plea

Petitioner fined Rs0.5 million for continued absence, barred from adding 'brigadier' before his name

ISLAMABAD:

The Supreme Court disposed of on Wednesday a petition seeking to annul the February 8 general elections and fined the petitioner Rs0.5 million for a no-show. 

The petition, filed by Brig (retd) Ali Khan, was disposed of on the basis of withdrawal by the petitioner. The apex court further barred Khan from adding 'brigadier' before his name. 

A three-member bench led by the Chief Justice of Pakistan Qazi Faez Isa and comprising Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar and Justice Musarrat Hilali took up the petition.

The court staff informed the bench today that the petitioner had been issued a notice by the Ministry of Defense on February 19, but Khan still failed to appear.

The additional attorney general also said that the police visited the petitioner’s residence and pasted the notice on the entrance.

When the chief justice inquired regarding the former military officer's profile, he was informed by the AAG that "Khan is a former brigadier who was court-martialled in 2012".

It was further revealed during the hearing that the petitioner had sent an email to the court stating that he was travelling abroad and had attached details of the ticket, boarding pass and other documents.

CJP remarked that our office verified that the email belonged to Khan, and he also requested to withdraw the petition citing his unavailability for the court appearance.

“According to the documents, the petitioner took a connecting flight from Doha to Bahrain. He is a strange man. People take return tickets because they are cheap. He took a one-way ticket. It appears to be a publicity stunt,” CJP Isa said.

During the last hearing, CJP Isa expressed his anger at the absence of a petitioner who had filed the petition.

The court staff informed the bench that a notice was sent to petitioner Khan at his home address but it was not complied with, while his mobile phone was switched off and no contact could be established via WhatsApp either.

The country has experienced further political instability following the polls on February 8, with most major political parties crying foul amid alleged rigging. 

Widespread protests in Balochistan, Sindh, and other parts of the country against the alleged rigging in the 2024 general elections.

In a scathing criticism of the Feb 8 general elections, PTI's founder Imran Khan has denounced the poll irregularities as the "mother of all rigging," asserting that it has turned Pakistan into a global laughing stock.