Back in the game: SC repeals lifetime poll bar on Balochistan senator

Says Rind cannot be prohibited from contesting elections for life.


Qaiser Zulfiqar September 29, 2011

ISLAMABAD:


The Supreme Court has repealed the Balochistan High Court’s (BHC) verdict against Senator Muhammad Ali Rind and allowed him to contest elections for parliament.


The apex court had reserved its verdict last week on an appeal filed by Balochistan National Party leader Senator Rind against his disqualification. BHC had barred him from contesting elections in August.

A three-member bench headed by Justice Mian Shakirullah Jan said a convict who has completed his sentence cannot be barred from contesting elections.

The BHC had directed Rind to return all perks and privileges he had enjoyed for two years as senator and had directed the government to take action against him.

The BNP leader had entered into a plea bargain with the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) to decrease his sentence up to 10 years when an accountability court in Quetta disqualified him for 21 years.

He completed the sentence in June this year.

During the Senate elections held in 2009, Rind had not disclosed his disqualification by NAB when filing his nomination papers.  After he was elected as senator, former provincial information minister Mir Muhammad Akram Baloch filed a petition in BHC and contended that Rind was a convict but he had failed to disclose his disqualification.

Senator Rind evaded court notices for two years and appeared before the BHC in July this year.

After the high court’s decision, Rind filed a review appeal in the Supreme Court against his dis­­qualification.

On September 19, the apex court had observed that a person stands automatically disqualified once he has been awarded punishment by
a court.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 29th, 2011.

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