LAHORE: The Lahore High Court (LHC) Wednesday gave President Asif Ali Zardari another chance to comply with the court’s order adding otherwise the court would see what action could be taken, Geo News reported.
A three member bench of the LHC headed by Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial completed proceedings on the petitions relating to the contempt of court being committed by President Zardari by not giving up his political activities in the President House, despite the LHC full bench May 12 ruling that he (Asif Zardari) could not continue as co-chairman of the ruling Pakistan People’s Party, while sitting in the presidency.
The full bench had asked President Zardari to either step down as co-chairman of the PPP or stop using the presidency for politicking.
LHC CJ said that LHC is the country’s constitutional court and a decision has to be taken about the constitutional head of the state, therefore, we would fix a time for compliance of the court order.
LHC CJ further said that full court May 12 ruling hoped that the president would refrain from holding political activities in the President House, but this certainly didn’t mean that the court order would be flouted.
Earlier, the court expressed its displeasure on the absence of the federal government’s law officer and said it was highly inappropriate that “the court calls for the law officer assisting the proceeding and he doesn’t come.”
Additional Attorney General Abdul Hai Gilani told the court that he hasn’t received any notice and therefore, the court should adjourn the proceeding. Instead the court asked him to argue on the admissibility of the petitions of the petitioners A.K. Dogar and Azhar Siddique, but he raised a new point of objection that the court could not continue the proceeding without serving him the notice. However the court dismissed his objection.
The petitioners made a plea that the President’s post under the constitution was non-partisan and non-political, but President Zardari was neither non-partisan nor he was fulfilling the constitutional requirement, therefore, he could be prosecuted for contempt of court.