MUZAFFARABAD:
A full-court bench of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) Supreme Court headed by Chief Justice Muhammad Azam Khan gave a verdict in favour of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Secretary General Shah Ghulam Qadir on Friday allowing him to contest elections from the Neelum Valley.
The court decision has opened the doors for all refugees from Indian Kashmir settled in Pakistan to contest elections in any constituency of AJK.
The apex court gave the decision on an appeal filed by the PML-N leader against the AJK High Court order of 2013. The high court had earlier directed the AJK Election Commission to reject papers of Qadir on the grounds that he was a refugee from the Indian Kashmir.
The PML-N leader lost the AJK Assembly elections in 2011 against Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) candidate Mian Abdul Wahid by 2,000 votes.
The AJK Supreme Court bench comprised Chief Justice Muhammad Azam Khan, Justice Muhammad Ibrahim Zai and Justice Raja Saeed Akram Khan.
Justice (retired) Manzoor Hussain Gilani and senior advocate of AJK Supreme Court Raja Muhammad Hanif Khan assisted the court as amicus curiae (friends of the court).
Commenting on the verdict, Qadir accused the All Jammu and Kashmir Muslim Conference of trying to create a divide between refugees and residents of AJK.
While talking to media persons outside the court premises he said, “we are proud of our courts”.
Published in The Express Tribune, December 13th, 2014.
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