Daily Times

Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Friday directed the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) to submit response on a civil society activist’s petition seeking action against participation of members of banned terror outfits under new names in the upcoming general elections.

Activist Gul Zehra had moved the IHC against the candidatures of members of banned organisations, particularly banned Ahle-e-Sunnat Wal Jamaat (ASWJ). Members of the ASWJ are running for national and provincial assemblies seats across the country under a new name, Pakistan Rah-e-Haq Party. Nomination papers of several individuals associated with ASWJ have been accepted by the ECP, despite its claims of carrying out a strict scrutiny process.

A number of members of these proscribed organisations who have been cleared to contest the elections are listed on the 4th Schedule of Anti Terrorism Act (ATA), the petitioner maintained.

Talking to Daily Times, the petitioner said she had submitted an application to the ECP three weeks ago, raising concerns over the electoral involvement of banned terror groups which are operating under new names. “I was initially told by an official that a meeting with Chief ECP Sardar Raza will be arranged so I can effectively discuss the issue. But despite regular follow ups, I did not hear back from the Election Commission,” she said.

Talking about the IHC’s orders, Zehra said the high court agreed with her concerns and stated that the involvement of criminals in the elections is illogical, adding that she had to knock the door of the high court after ECP’s failure to act.

Extensive documents have been attached with the petition detailing evidence against the said candidates along with all respective clauses of the Constitution and National Action Plan (NAP) that bar the participation of individuals with extremist links in the electoral process. The evidence enclosed with the petition also includes CDs containing hate speech against the Shia community practiced by the said candidates on multiple occasions.

“Most of these people are on 4th Schedule and this is something the state has decided. We are only asking them to follow the law of the land,” she told Daily Times, and added that the laws and policies required to keep extremists and their apologists away from politics are already in place, but implementation remains missing.

The petitioner urged the ECP to act before the general elections so dubious candidates with criminal history can be barred from contesting.

Meanwhile, another activist and convener of Shia Missing Persons Committee Rashid Rizvi has separately filed a petition in Election Appellant Tribunal seeking ASWJ leader Aurangzeb Farooqi’s disqualification from PS 91 on grounds that the candidate has concealed an FIR registered against him in 2016 over murder of Shia activist Khurram Zaki. Aurangzeb Farooqi’s name is listed on 4th Schedule. The petition has been fixed for hearing on Monday.

Election Commission of Pakistan did not respond to Daily Times’s request for comment.

Published in Daily Times, June 24^th 2018.