KARACHI: The Sindh High Court (SHC) on Thursday directed the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) to file by March 20 its response in a petition seeking to suspend the legislative assembly membership of provincial Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah.
A two-judge bench of the high court expressed displeasure over the election commission for failing to respond to the petition in time, observing: “It appears that the ECP doesn’t want to submit its response.”
The ECP counsel asked the court for additional time to file its response. Sindh Advocate General Salman Talibuddin argued that the Supreme Court (SC) has already handed a verdict on the point raised in the petition which, he said, is not maintainable.
He said that the petitioner is in habit of instituting such petitions and requested the court to rejects it.
The petition against the Sindh chief minister said that Shah had been disqualified by the apex court on May 2, 2013, but he contested a by-election in 2014 from Jamshoro. The petitioner pleaded with the high court to disqualify him for a lifetime.
