NA speaker’s plea against vote recount rejected
NA speaker Sardar Ayaz Sadiq had challenged an election tribunal’s order for recounting of votes in NA-122
LAHORE:
The Lahore High Court (LHC) has dismissed two petitions filed by National Assembly Speaker Sardar Ayaz Sadiq challenging an election tribunal’s order for recounting of votes in NA-122 constituency and seeking contempt proceedings against the tribunal’s judge.
Justice Ijazul Ahsan of the LHC on Tuesday scrapped the petitions, noting that both of them are not maintainable.
Earlier, the petitioner’s counsel contended that the election tribunal had handed in the verdict without deciding maintainability of the petition, filed one-and-a-half year ago by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chairman.
In his petition, Imran Khan, who was defeated by Sardar Ayaz Sadiq of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz’s (PML-N) in NA-122, had alleged that the elections were rigged in favour of his rival.
Sadiq’s counsel also argued that the tribunal judge, Kazim Ali Malik, had violated a Supreme Court judgment, which instructs to first decide maintainability of such applications rather than handing in verdicts.
He said the tribunal had made a one-sided judgment as it recorded evidences offered by the PTI chief but did not record evidences by Ayaz Sadiq and gave its verdict without listening to him.
The petitioner’s counsel also claimed that the affidavit filed by Imran before the tribunal was not attested and signed by an oath commissioner. The testimonies of six witnesses were also fake, he added.
The LHC judge, however, remarked that according to the SC’s verdict the maintainability of Imran’s application can be decided at the time of final verdict. The court later dismissed Ayaz Sadiq’s petitions.
It may be mentioned that the case was inordinately delayed after Ayaz Sadiq obtained a stay order from the LHC. The court, however, dismissed Sadiq’s plea on November 20, allowing the tribunal to finally proceed with the case.
Accepting Imran’s plea, the tribunal judge Kazim Ali Malik also constituted a one-man commission comprising former additional district and sessions judge Ghulam Hussain Awan to carry out the inspection of votes.
The commission will submit an audit report to the tribunal after examining the NA-122 poll records.
Published in The Express Tribune, December 17th, 2014.
The Lahore High Court (LHC) has dismissed two petitions filed by National Assembly Speaker Sardar Ayaz Sadiq challenging an election tribunal’s order for recounting of votes in NA-122 constituency and seeking contempt proceedings against the tribunal’s judge.
Justice Ijazul Ahsan of the LHC on Tuesday scrapped the petitions, noting that both of them are not maintainable.
Earlier, the petitioner’s counsel contended that the election tribunal had handed in the verdict without deciding maintainability of the petition, filed one-and-a-half year ago by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chairman.
In his petition, Imran Khan, who was defeated by Sardar Ayaz Sadiq of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz’s (PML-N) in NA-122, had alleged that the elections were rigged in favour of his rival.
Sadiq’s counsel also argued that the tribunal judge, Kazim Ali Malik, had violated a Supreme Court judgment, which instructs to first decide maintainability of such applications rather than handing in verdicts.
He said the tribunal had made a one-sided judgment as it recorded evidences offered by the PTI chief but did not record evidences by Ayaz Sadiq and gave its verdict without listening to him.
The petitioner’s counsel also claimed that the affidavit filed by Imran before the tribunal was not attested and signed by an oath commissioner. The testimonies of six witnesses were also fake, he added.
The LHC judge, however, remarked that according to the SC’s verdict the maintainability of Imran’s application can be decided at the time of final verdict. The court later dismissed Ayaz Sadiq’s petitions.
It may be mentioned that the case was inordinately delayed after Ayaz Sadiq obtained a stay order from the LHC. The court, however, dismissed Sadiq’s plea on November 20, allowing the tribunal to finally proceed with the case.
Accepting Imran’s plea, the tribunal judge Kazim Ali Malik also constituted a one-man commission comprising former additional district and sessions judge Ghulam Hussain Awan to carry out the inspection of votes.
The commission will submit an audit report to the tribunal after examining the NA-122 poll records.
Published in The Express Tribune, December 17th, 2014.