PTI to move NA speaker against PM

ISLAMABAD: A reference to be filed by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) with National Assembly Speaker Sardar Ayaz Sadiq, seeking disqualification of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, on Monday will overlap its similar plea that is being heard in the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP).

“The subject of the new reference will be the same as was agitated in the previous petition,” PTI spokesman Naeemul Haq told The News, when approached for comments.

Asked about the reason behind the duplication of the same issue raised at different forums, he said that the first plea was filed by an individual, Dr Yasmeen Raashid, the PTI candidate, who had contested for a Lahore seat against Nawaz Sharif in the 2013 general elections and lost while the fresh reference will be submitted by the PTI as party.

Naeemul Haq said PTI Vice Chairman Shah Mehmood Qureshi and some other members of the National Assembly (MNAs) of the party will be petitioners in the new reference.

He said that the speaker was the proper forum to seek disqualification of an MNA under articles 62 and 63 of the Constitution. He said the issue of offshore companies and other alleged corruption of the defendant would be raised in the reference.

The 72-page reference said the prime minister had not mentioned the offshore companies, identified in the Panama Papers, in his statements of assets filed with the ECP. Since the matter came under the qualification and disqualification constitutional clauses, the ECP should declare Nawaz Sharif ineligible to hold the office, it claimed.

Apparently, the PTI’s move is meant to counterbalance a reference submitted by some Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) MNAs with the speaker against Imran Khan, demanding his disqualification, alleging that he concealed his offshore company and other assets in his nomination papers. It claimed that all the evidence and proofs have been annexed with the reference.  The PTI’s reference also seemed to be an afterthought after the PML-N filed its complaint with the speaker. It wants a similar treatment with its petition as the speaker will deal with the PML-N’s motion.

Under the Constitution, these references will automatically stand referred to the ECP for adjudication, if Ayaz Sadiq failed to take a decision on them within thirty days of their submission.  However, the speaker has the power to trash the references on the ground that the claims made in them do not justify ouster of the prime minister as well as the PTI chairman as MNA.

After the references will either land in the ECP following the lapse of thirty days in case of no decision by the speaker or if he chooses to send them to the electoral forum, the ECP is bound to pass its judgment on them within ninety days.

Clause 2 of article 63 says if any question arises whether a lawmaker has become disqualified from being a legislator, the speaker shall, unless he decides that no such question has arisen, refer the question to the ECP within thirty days, and if he fails to do so within this period, it shall be deemed to have been referred to the ECP. 

According to clause 3, the ECP shall decide the question within ninety days from its receipt or deemed to have been received and if it is of the opinion that the legislator has become disqualified, he shall cease to be a lawmaker and his seat shall become vacant.

As per the case law in which these provisions were interpreted by superior courts, the speaker is required to “apply his mind” while deciding the question of disqualification of an MNA. In this process, he will call the defendants to come clean on such a question. Imran Khan has declared that he will not appear before the speaker, if summoned, as Ayaz Sadiq has nothing to do with the matter.

If the speaker sits on the references and the petitions finally go to the ECP as prescribed by the Constitution, the electoral body will have more high profile cases to sit in judgment. Already, it has another similar reference, filed by the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) with it on which it has kicked off proceedings along with the one submitted by the PTI.  Article 63 gives a long list of disqualifications that debar the contestants from being elected as federal or provincial legislators. Objections can be made against them at the time of filing nomination papers by referring to these ineligibilities. But questions pointing out such disqualifications can also be raised anytime even after they have been elected.