Daily Times

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court (SC) on Thursday adjourned the hearing of a petition seeking directives for de-seating of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chief Imran Khan and other parliamentarians including the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) lawmakers until November 15 and issued notices to premier Nawaz and opposition leader Khursheed Shah.

When a three-judge bench headed by Chief Justice Anwar Zaheer Jamali took up the plea filed by Barrister Syed Zafar Ali Shah – a disgruntled leader of ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) – the apex court declined the plea, seeking directives to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) to accept PTI lawmakers’ resignations, filed in the wake of 2140 sit-in, and observed that the respondents’ reply would be examined before the judgement.

PTI lawmakers, during the 126-days long sit-in against alleged rigging in general elections of 2013, had resigned from their seats in 2014. However, National Assembly Speaker Ayaz Sadiq had not accepted the resignations.

Feeling aggrieved, former PML-N Senator Zafar Ali Shah had filed a petition before the Islamabad High Court (IHC), requesting it to de-seat the PTI’s lawmakers from the parliament but the court declined the plea. Subsequently Zafar Ali Shah approached the top court.

On October 24, the top court issued notices to Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, PTI chief Imran Khan, opposition leader Khursheed Shah, PTI and MQM lawmakers regarding the case’s hearing. Notices were issued to at least 40 parliamentarians.

Zafar contended that despite the notices issued to the respondents, neither the MQM lawmakers submitted their replies nor anyone from the PTI bothered to appear before the court.

The top court told the attorney general that comments from the federal government should have been filed. The petitioner said the government was deliberately delaying the matter and the parliament was being run illegally by not accepting the lawmakers’ resignations.

He requested the court to direct the Election Commission of Pakistan to accepting the resignations. However, the top court adjourned the hearing in the case until November 15, but ruled that no further adjournment requests would be entertained.

Meanwhile, the same three-judge bench also adjourned the hearing in NA-110 Sialkot case until November 8.