ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court on Thursday dismissed a petition that asked to stop candidates from running in multiple constituencies during elections.
The petitioner argued that letting candidates contest from more than one constituency goes against the idea of “one person, one vote,” and that it isn’t fair for candidates to run in areas where they don’t even live or have a registered vote. However, the court disagreed with these points.
Justice Musarrat Hilali said, “We can annul laws, but we cannot make new ones.” Justice Mohammad Ali Mazhar added, “If you are challenging the Elections Act, that’s a separate matter.”
The petitioner’s lawyer further criticised the law, saying that candidates shouldn’t be allowed to run in constituencies where they don’t have any connection. But Justice Ameenuddin Khan responded by saying, “If the law allowed a candidate to not vote for themselves, your argument would hold.”
Justice Jamal Mandokhel pointed out that the law requires a candidate to have support from people in the constituency where they are running. “The law requires the proposer and seconder to be from the same constituency, and since the legislature has allowed this, you cannot question the intent of the legislature,” he said.
Justice Hassan Azhar Rizvi also suggested that the issue could be better handled by political leaders, saying, “It would be better for the petitioner to persuade the political leadership.”
In the end, the Supreme Court agreed with the Registrar’s office and dismissed the petition.
