Tarar wins long battle against Ijaz Chaudhry

ISLAMABAD: Respected Mumtaz Tarar fought a long battle to get his political rival, Ijaz Chaudhry disqualified, who was elected member of the National Assembly (MNA) from NA-108 Mandi Bahauddin in the 2013 parliamentary polls.
Tarar resisted great pressure of his own Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), which Ijaz Chaudhry had joined after having been elected as independent, to continue his legal battle against him.
At times, Tarar was asked by some senior PML-N leaders not to press the petition he had filed against Ijaz Chaudhry in the election tribunal. But he continued refusing politely.In the 2013 elections, Tarar had bagged 73,789 votes and was defeated by Ijaz Chaudhry, who had secured 85,009 ballots, in the NA-108 Mandi Bahauddin constituency. The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) candidate had got 25,406 voters while the Pakistan People’s Party nominee had clinched 29,883 ballots.
Tarar challenged Ijaz Chaudhry’s victory in the tribunal on different grounds. However, the winner was finally disqualified on two counts - having fake matriculation and Bachelor’s certificate/degree and failure to produce his intermediate certificate, and having got seven-marla residential plots allotted to himself and his two brothers in 1986, which were meant for homeless people.
The Jinnah Abadi Scheme was introduced by the then Prime Minister Muhammad Khan Junejo. The plots were adjacent to Ijaz Chaudhry’s property in Mandi Bahauddin.Tarar argued and his plea was upheld by the election tribunal that Ijaz Chaudhry did not declare in his nomination papers that he had got the plot in the homeless people’s scheme.
Ijaz Chaudhry had got his university degree from a Philippines educational institution, but his travel record showed that he never visited this country.Even on Tuesday when a Supreme Court bench held the last hearing on his appeal against the decision of the election tribunal, it asked him to produce a copy of his passport to establish that he had traveled to Philippines for study or any other purpose, but he could not. He said he did not have the passport.
Soft-spoken Tarar, a man of modest financial means, elected to the non-party 1985 National Assembly for the first time, had made a name in the proceedings by boldly speaking on critical issues. He was part of the then opposition group. He always enjoyed a superb reputation and earned respect of all and sundry. He was among those MPs who would do their homework on the topics they chose to speak.
Before the 2013 elections, Ijaz Chaudhry, considered a very rich person, was associated with the PML-Q and remained its MNA for five years in 2008-2013. After the last polls, he joined the PML-N. However, last year he affiliated himself with the PTI when it was staging a sit-in at the D-Chowk Islamabad. He also appeared on the container with Imran Khan and slammed the PML-N. He had said that he had joined the PTI to bring change in Pakistan. He had stated that he was sick and tired of the traditional politics.