AJK SC quashes ex-PM Tanveer Ilyas' disqualification

The Supreme Court of Azad Jammu Kashmir (AJK) on Wednesday overturned the disqualification of former prime minister Sardar Tanveer Ilyas, allowing him to contest elections to any public office.

The court accepted Ilyas' appeal against his disqualification, which was awarded by the AJK High Court in a contempt of court case.

Ilyas had sought forgiveness from the court and was granted relief after a full bench of the Supreme Court headed by Chief Justice Raja Saeed Akram Khan terminated the sentence. The verdict makes Ilyas eligible to participate in elections after a month.

In April 2023, a full court bench of the Azad Jammu and Kashmir High Court disqualified the prime minister from being elected or being the member of the Legislative Assembly or from holding any public office for two years after holding him guilty of contempt.

The unanimous decision by all six judges, authored by Justice Khalid Rasheed, had left everyone present in the court at that time shocked as most were expecting that the court would show leniency and accept the unconditional apology tendered by the AJK premier.

"Mr Tanveer Ilyas has admitted the contents of the newspaper clippings in the open court. Prima facie, in his statement, contemptuous wording has been used which is against the prestige and independence of [the] judiciary… He has submitted his reply, stating therein that if in any way the prestige and status of judiciary is hurt, he tenders unconditional apology and places himself at the mercy of the court," the judgement noted.

As the contemnor himself admitted remarks pertaining to the contempt and also refrained from submitting "any other objection or reply" in response to the "show cause notice issued in the open court," therefore "it can be safely held that his said act comes within the ambit of contempt of court under Article 45 of the AJK interim Constitution, 1974," added the judgement.