7-member larger bench headed by CJP Isa holds hearing on case to determine period of ineligibility of legislators
- The decision of the SC in case of deciding the fate of Nawaz, that of Tareen in the polls.
- The 7-member bench, headed by CJP Isa, is conducting the hearing on the case.
- SC decided to resolve the disqualification issue “once and for all”.
The Supreme Court on Thursday resumed hearing on a case related to life disqualification of legislators under Article 62(1)(f) of the Constitution and Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Qazi Faez Isa decided to decide the question “once and for all”. “.
The high court’s decision in the case is expected to have a significant impact on the country’s political landscape, as Pakistan heads towards a crucial general election, scheduled for February 8.
A seven-member bench, headed by CJP Isa and comprising Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah, Justice Yahya Afridi, Justice Aminuddin Khan, Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhel, Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar and Justice Musarrat Hilali, is conducting hold a hearing on the case.
The case proceedings are streamed live on the SC website and YouTube channel.
The fate of many politicians, including Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) supremo Nawaz Sharif and Istehkam-e-Pakistan Party (IPP) founder Jahangir Tareen, depends on the verdict of this case.
Whether or not the above-mentioned politicians can participate in the upcoming elections will be determined once the high court makes a decision.
The SC held the last hearing in this case on January 2, during which CJP Isa advised against assuming that a certain party was being favored.
“This is a constitutional issue that we are going to resolve once and for all and we will try to conclude it quickly to avoid confusion to the returning officers (ROs) while they receive the nomination papers for the upcoming elections,” he said. after hearing the parties.
The apex court took note of contradictions regarding the duration of disqualification in the Election Act, 2017 and a verdict of the Supreme Court during the hearing of a petition filed by former PML-N provincial legislator Sardar Meer Badshah Khan Qaisrani on last month.
Qaisrani had challenged his life disqualification for a false degree in 2007.
During the hearing on December 11 last year, CJP Faez Isa observed that the Supreme Court ruling on lifetime disqualification and the amendments made to the Electoral Act, 2017 could not exist simultaneously.
He had said that legislation enacted by parliament over the Electoral Act 2017 or the ruling passed by the Supreme Court would prevail.
“The issue must be resolved once and for all,” the CJP remarked and referred the matter to a three-member committee, constituted under section 2 of the Supreme Court (Practice and Procedure) Act, 2023, which decides the fixing of cases before benches of the supreme court.
The Supreme Court, in a 2018 ruling, held that any person disqualified under Article 62(1)(f) of the Constitution would be deemed disqualified for life.
Subsequently, the former Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) coalition government made an amendment to the Electoral Act, 2017, reducing the disqualification of legislators to five years, retrospectively.
Former Prime Minister Nawaz and IPP chief Tareen are the only two legislators who were disqualified for life in June and December 2017, respectively, after they were found to be “dishonest” under Article 62 (1 ) (f) of the Constitution. .
