SC adjourns NA-154 by-poll matter till today

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court Monday adjourned hearing till today (Tuesday) into NA-154 Lodhran by election case.
A three-member bench, headed by Justice Mian Saqib Nisar, heard the appeal of Siddique Baloch, challenging the verdict of Election Tribunal Multan that disqualified him for lifetime. When the court resumed hearing, Justice Mian Saqib Nisar observed that they would first look into the disqualification matter of the petitioner adding that if it was proved that the petitioner’s stood disqualified then there was no need to further look into the matter of rigging.The court asked Shehzad Shaukat, counsel for the petitioner, to first begin with the disqualification issue.
Makhdoom Ali Khan, counsel for the respondent, Jehangir Tareen submitted before the court that he would start first with the disqualification matter of the petitioner.
Shahzad Shaukat submitted that his client did matriculation, intermediate and graduation as a private candidate.“It means the petitioner never went to school”, Justice Saqib Nisar observed.
He told the counsel that the Election Tribunal had summoned the witness for verification of graduation degree of the petitioner but the witness did not appear.Shehzad Shaukat contended that Director Higher Education Commission (HEC) had appeared before the court and verified the graduation degree of his client. The court asked the counsel to read out the statement of the petitioner given during the cross examination.
Justice Mian Saqib Nisar observed that it was a settled law that one can prove his case through cross examination.Reading out the statement given on oath by the petitioner, his counsel informed the court that it was true that his client had done matriculation at the age of 43.
Meanwhile, when the counsel for the petitioner was arguing before the court, a slight wave of earthquake started at around 2:09 pm. The court continued the proceedings. However, when the quake reached its peak, litigants, lawyers and journalists started leaving the courtroom and consequently the judges also left the courtroom.Later on, a large number of litigants, lawyers and media men rushed to leave the court premises and came out in the lawn of the court building.