Fake ticket or abandoned candidate?: PML-N chief denies Mandokhel’s nomination

Lawyer to produce certificate allegedly given to him by Nawaz Sharif.

KARACHI:

The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz Chief Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif has denied that his party ever nominated a lawyer, Qadir Khan Mandokhel, to contest elections on a National Assembly seat.

Nawaz, who filed his affidavit through Arshad Khan Jadoon, stated that he had never given a ticket to Mandokhel to contest election from the NA-239 constituency of Karachi. The controversy arose when Mandokhel went to the court against the election commission for allotting him the election symbol of a cow instead of ‘tiger’ that belongs to PML-N.

Claiming his association with the PML-N, the petitioner said that he had filed his nomination papers for scrutiny upon which the election commission allotted the tiger as his party’s election symbol. PML-N general secretary Saleem Zia, however, also approached the commission, alleging that the candidate had filed a fake party certificate after which the returning officer cancelled Mandokhel’s allotment of the tiger symbol and gave him the cow symbol instead. On the other hand, Mandokhel insisted that the he was given a ticket by Nawaz Sharif to contest election, and pleaded to the court to declare him a candidate of the PML-N and order re-allotment of the tiger symbol.

To resolve the controversy, the Sindh High Court, asked Saleem Zia on May 2 to obtain verification from his party’s chief regarding the petitioner’s nomination.

On Saturday, PML-N president told the court under oath that his party never nominated the petitioner and his plea should be dismissed.

Mandokhel requested for time to produce the certificate and confirmation order from Nawaz nominating him to contest. Chief Justice Mushir Alam, while heading the bench, allowed him time till May 7. Meanwhile, the court directed the office to call record of proceedings from the concerned returning officer.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 5^th, 2013.