- SC issues notices to Chief Secretary, IG Punjab on PTI’s plea for a level playing field
- Justice Isa directs Khosa to approach election tribunal and then contact SC if matter still unresolved
ISLAMABAD: Chief Justice of Pakistan Qazi Faez Isa on Wednesday declared that courts were standing behind every political party regarding elections while leading three-member bench hearing PTI’s contempt plea against the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) for violating directives on level-playing field.
On Wednesday, a three-member bench, headed by CJP Isa and comprising Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar and Justice Musarrat Hilali, heard the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s (PTI) petition regarding the level playing field in elections.
The court issued a notice to the Chief Secretary and IG Punjab, seeking their response on PTI’s plea for a level playing field. The hearing was adjourned until January 8, Monday.
At the outset of the hearing, the PTI’s lawyers submitted additional documents to the Supreme Court stating that the nomination papers of 668 key PTI leaders, as well as around 2,000 proposers and seconders have been rejected.
According to the additional documents, 56 cases of snatching of nomination papers of PTI leaders took place, while proposers and seconders were also arrested, and it was decided to place video evidence in this regard in the Supreme Court.
Besides that, police also picked up proposers and seconders of the party’s candidates, read the documents.
At the outset of the hearing, PTI counsel Latif Khosa and Shoaib Shaheen came to the rostrum.
During the hearing of the case, CJP Isa expressed indignation at the prefix of Sardar along with the name of PTI lawyer Latif Khosa. He remarked that the Sardar-Nawab system ceases to exist now and would not be tolerated in court.
The chief justice told Latif Khosa that his government of the PPP legislated on abolishing the chieftaincy system, while now his sons had also become sardars. At this, Khosa replied that it was written by the stenographer and wouldn’t happen again.
Justice Mazhar asked whether the PTI had approached the ECP on the SC’s verdict and that the “main case” had been dealt with on Dec 22 as the contempt plea was not a new case. He further asked whether the electoral body or its provincial branches had made a decision or issued any new directives.
Khosa replied that the ECP had not given the PTI any directives. Here, the chief justice ordered Khosa to explain his legal and constitutional points rather than “starting a political lecture like everyone else”.
The CJP asked how the inspector generals and the chief secretaries were related to the ECP and ordered the PTI counsel to provide evidence.
Khosa responded that he had provided the details in his application, to which Justice Isa said the party could make only the ECP a respondent in the contempt plea and that a separate plea needed to be filed for action against individuals.
The CJP noted that if nomination papers had been rejected, an appeal could be filed against the rejection.
Khosa informed the SC that 668 nomination papers of the PTI had been dismissed, to which Justice Mazhar wondered how the court could understand the matter without being provided with the figures for the forms accepted.
Justice Mazhar also noted that the plea stated that data had been gathered via social media platforms and the names of a few had not been stated. Khosa clarified that all the complaints were from the PTI.
CJP Isa reiterated the option to appeal the rejection, to which the lawyer replied that copies of the rejection were not being given and the path to appeal was “blocked”.
At this, the chief justice remarked: “You think the high court is so helpless it cannot call the [returning officer (RO) and ask] ‘why have you rejected the nomination papers’?”
“We are trying to push through democracy but every day, we come across people not wanting to go into elections,” the CJP said, as he expressed his displeasure at Khosa for making the IGs respondents in his plea.
“The courts are standing behind every political party for elections. We have repeatedly said so,” the top judge observed.
Justice Isa then directed Khosa to approach the election tribunal and then contact SC if the matter was still unresolved.
At one point during the hearing, the CJP wondered how the court could accept the PTI’s contempt plea without listening to the other respondents and how it could direct for “accepting a party’s [nomination] papers and rejecting those of others”.
The court subsequently summoned the ECP officials to the rostrum. The CJP inquired about the deadline for filing an appeal against the rejection of nomination papers, to which the ECP’s director-general of law replied that today is the last day.
For his part, Khosa argued that he had made the IGs respondents as the ECP had issued directives to them on the party’s complaint. When asked about the copy of the complaint, the counsel replied he had not attached it with the contempt plea.
Khosa asked whether the ECP had fulfilled its responsibilities by only giving directives to the provincial authorities, at which Justice Isa told him to stay within the scope of the contempt plea.
The top judge noted that the election commission had on Dec 26 submitted a report on the implementation of the SC’s directives.
Here, Khosa urged the apex court to adjourn the hearing till tomorrow, at which CJP Isa directed the PTI counsel to submit a response to the ECP’s report first and provide details of what happened after Dec 26.
Upon Khosa saying that “everything has appeared on the media”, the chief justice said he does not watch the media.
“Not just cosmetic implementation; you are the protector of basic rights [so] you should ensure transparent elections,” Khosa said to the CJP Isa.
The chief justice stated that the PTI had not “made a particular allegation” in its contempt plea, adding that the party had also made similar accusations during the 2013 general elections but nothing had come out of it.
Khosa argued that the situation back then had no comparison to the current circumstances. The top judge remarked that incumbent Chief Election Commissioner Sikandar Sultan Raja had been appointed by the PTI.
“There cannot be a stronger order than our Dec 22 one. If you have made any complaint to the election commission after that, then you may tell us,” the CJP added.
Meanwhile, Justice Mazhar asked the ECP officials whether the body was providing the PTI with a level playing field, to which the ECP’s law DG replied that “every complaint” of the PTI had been forwarded to the relevant authorities and was decided according to law.
However, Khosa contended that a “blind eye cannot be turned to people picked up from outside RO offices”, adding that his own son was arrested.
The chief justice inquired whether the Punjab advocate general was present in the courtroom, to which the additional advocate general said he was not.
The SC then directed Punjab Inspector General Dr Usman Anwar and the provincial advocate general and chief secretary to submit a report on whether its Dec 22 directives have been complied with.
