LHC moved to stay Senate polls

LAHORE: A writ petition has been moved to the Lahore High Court seeking a stay order against upcoming elections of the senate till the elimination of amendments made through Election Act 2017 to protect corrupt, defaulter and dual nationality holder politicians.

Through a petition Advocate Azhar Siddique challenged the senate polls being held on March 3 pleading that the parliament on October 2, 2017 passed the impugned Election Act 2017 and omitted clauses relating to several declarations in nomination papers required for the candidates. He states that columns relating to loan defaults/loan write–offs, dual nationality, assets, non-payment of utility charges, land revenue record during the last three assessment/financial years and income tax paid by the candidates have been deleted from the nomination paper under the impugned act. He alleged that all the parties with malafide intention, collusively and cleverly ensured non-disclosure of essential details in the nomination forms to be used in the forthcoming elections. He said the parties failed to realise that it was a requirement of the supreme law of the land concealing vital information relating to payment of taxes and written off loans, etc. is in conflict with Articles 62 and 63 of the Constitution. He pleaded that the disclosure of the said requirements is constitutional obligation and cannot be waived or relaxed under the impugned Election Act, 2017. Therefore, he argued that the process of scrutiny of the candidates for senate polls is defective in terms of Articles 62 and & 63. He said the election, if conducted under the impugned law, would destroy the sanctity and legality of the polls. The petitioner-lawyer asks the court to stay the process of senate election till removal of errors in the Election Act, 2017 by the relevant authorities.

Lawyers: The lawyers on Thursday observed strike and boycotted courts’ proceedings to condemn murder of their colleague in Ferozwala.

Lahore High Court Chief Justice Muhammad Yawar Ali took notice of the incident and sought reply from the police. Advocate Pervez Akhtar, 50, was going to courts from his residence in Rachna Town on Wednesday when some two assailants opened fire on him. He was rushed to a nearby hospital where he succumbed to his injuries. It is third incident in which a lawyer was gunned down in Sheikhpura as in Oct a lawyer and his wife were murdered while a female lawyer, Aalia Shehzadi, was shot dead in May last year. The lawyers held strike and condemned the murder of their colleagues. They said that the police did not provide them security and demanded the government authorities to arrest the culprits. They boycotted courts’ proceedings in lower courts due to which many cases were adjourned to the next dates. As a result, the litigants suffered, especially those who had come from far flung areas to attend proceedings of their cases in sessions courts, civil and other courts in the provincial capital.