Punjab CM’s election: Ruling allies want full court on Mazari’s ruling, SCBA plea

ISLAMABAD: The ruling alliance Saturday demanded the Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Justice Umar Ata Bandial constitute a full-court bench to hear the petition filed against the Punjab Assembly Deputy Speaker’s ruling in favour of the election of Hamza Shehbaz as Chief Minister.

“All the parties in the coalition government demand emphatically of the CJP that a full-court bench hear the case filed against ruling of the deputy speaker Punjab Assembly,” said a joint statement issued by the ruling alliance.

The parties said it will be fair that the full court bench, comprising all the respected judges of the Supreme Court, review the the Supreme Court bar application, the present application, and other related applications, and schedule them for hearing together and issue a single ruling because these are matters of national, political and constitutional importance.

The country is paying a heavy price of the resulting political instability is paying a heavy price, with the economy at risk of bankruptcy and the people suffering from inflation, unemployment and poverty, the statement said.

Turning their guns to PTI Chairman Imran Khan, the coalition rulers said that the former prime minister was moving the country’s politics towards chaos.

“Imran Khan is repeatedly creating chaos in politics with the aim of avoiding accountability, hiding his corruption and gaining power through illegitimate means,” they said in the statement.

The constitution draws clear lines of authority between the Legislature, the Judiciary, and the Executive, but an “arrogant violator of the Constitution” — Khan — wants to erase those lines, the statement said.

The coalition government said that the PTI chairman wants to move Pakistan’s democracy and right to governance towards “default”, “just as he did with the economy”.

“Imran Khan’s attitude and thought are like a ‘termite’ eating away at Pakistan [...] but the ruling coalition reiterates its commitment that there will be no compromise on the constitution, democracy and people’s right to rule,” they said.

They added that the coalition parties will move forward on every forum together and they will “fight against the darkness of fascism”.