SC dismisses PMLN candidate’s review plea for NA-97 vote recount

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court on Friday dismissed the review petition of a PMLN candidate regarding the recounting of votes in National Assembly constituency NA-97, Faisalabad-3.

A two-member bench of the apex court, comprising Justice Aminuddin Khan and Justice Naeem Akhtar Afghan, upheld its previous decision and dismissed the review petition filed by PMLN candidate Ali Gohar Baloch. During the hearing, Justice Aminuddin Khan observed that the apex court’s verdict was clear that no application for recounting had been filed before the returning officer.

Similarly, Justice Naeem Akhtar Afghan told Shahzad Shaukat, counsel for the petitioner, that the returning officer had communicated in writing to the election commission that no request for recounting had been made. “Supreme Court had dismissed the appellant’s petition on August 21, while you approached the returning officer on August 22,” the judge told the counsel for the petitioner. However, the counsel for the petitioner argued that after the Supreme Court’s verdict, the returning officer had provided an attested copy of the application. The judge questioned, “If the returning officer had informed the election commission in writing that no request was made, then how is he now providing the attested copy of the application?”

“It would be more appropriate for your client to approach the election tribunal,” the judge suggested. However, the counsel contended that the time for approaching the tribunal had expired.