Imran, Hamza plead not guilty before ECP

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) have eventually agreed on one point only to save their senior leaders from penalty by the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP).

The consensus emerged when Imran Khan and Hamza Shahbaz Sharif told the ECP through their lawyers that they did not breach its code of conduct to be observed during by-election to National Assembly seat NA-63 Jhelum held on August 31.

Imran Khan had addressed a public meeting in Jhelum while Hamza had spoken to a similar function in the constituency. The ECP had taken notice of the violation of the poll code. Obviously fearing that they will face serious consequences for their alleged transgression, they took the similar stand before ECP that they did not commit any illegality.

This was exceptional. The PTI has a history of loudly differing with the PML-N on each and every issue regardless of its political importance and weightage. Their agreement on even on a minor issue for whatever reason is noteworthy and conspicuous.

Both Imran Khan and Hamza, who are members of the National Assembly (MNAs), pleaded that they did not break the election code of conduct. The PTI Chairman’s lawyer, Naeem Bokhari, told the ECP that his client was not a position holder in the Punjab government and had been running an anti-corruption campaign.

Hamza’s attorney argued that there was no ban on the MNAs to visit constituencies for campaign during elections, and the same rule applies to them in any by-poll. However, as per the ECP code the prime minister and cabinet members as well as all federal and provincial legislators are barred from participating in election campaign of their party candidates.

Legislators from almost all the parties had openly defied this provision until the Jhelum returning officer (RO) served notices on Imran Khan and Hamza for running election campaigns for their nominees.

The PTI chairman had gone to the constituency on Aug 24 last while Hamza, who is the main point man of the PML-N for all by-elections in Punjab, had visited it two days earlier. Hamza had not responded to the notices issued by the RO while Imran Khan’s lawyer had taken the plea that the Lahore High Court (LHC) had scrapped the particular clause of the code in May 2015.

The ECP had approached the Supreme Court against the LHC decision which sent the matter back to the high court. By that time the local government elections in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) – that triggered the petition – had completed and the case could not proceed further.

The ECP asserted that the LHC’s earlier decision was not in the field anymore and the concerned code clause that bars lawmakers from taking part in election campaigns is intact. The ECP at the time of announcement of schedules for all subsequent polls had been issuing the same code.

The Jhelum RO was not satisfied with Imran Khan’s plea and forwarded the matter to the ECP for adjudication. Similarly, he had sent Hamza’s case to the ECP as well. The ECP had sent two notices to Hamza but he had not responded. However, his lawyer told the ECP on Monday that his client had not received any notice.