Daily Times

The Balochistan High Court on Tuesday disqualified Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf’s (PTI) provincial president Yar Muhammad Rind from contesting the July 25 polls.

A two-member bench of the BHC declared the PTI’s Balochistan president ineligible to contest the election, upholding the decision of the Election Commission of Pakistan’s (ECP) appellate tribunal which had earlier disqualified him on the grounds that his educational degree was fake and he had murder cases registered against him. During the hearing, the BHC declared that the decision of the returning officer and the appellate tribunal would stand, as the bench rejected Rind’s plea seeking permission to contest elections from PB-17 and NA-260 Kachi and Jhal Magsi.

Earlier, the bench had reserved its decision on Rind’s plea.

Following BHC’s verdict, the PTI’s Balochistan president announced that he will challenge the BHC’s decision in the Supreme Court.

Separately, the Supreme Court on Tuesday disqualified Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) leader Yasmeen Shah from contesting the election from Badin.

During a hearing of former National Assembly speaker Dr Fehmida Mirza’s petition against Yasmeen, who she has accused of holding a fake degree, Chief Justice of Pakistan Justice Mian Saqib Nisar pointed out that the PPP leader’s Matriculation certificate bore the incorrect name of her father.

“We cannot allow such people to contest elections,” Justice Nisar said, while disqualifying Yasmeen.

The BHC also disqualified former provincial minister Mir Faiq Ali Jamali from contesting the election.

Published in Daily Times, July 4^th 2018.