A constitutional petition seeking stay of the elections of the Legislative Council of the Northern Areas (NAs) besides, declaration of the election program as void and without lawful authority was filed in the Supreme Court on Tuesday.
The petition making respondents to the federation of Pakistan through Secretary Northern Areas and Kashmir Affairs Division, Federal Law Secretary and Northern Areas Chief Secretary was filed by Northern Areas PPP President Mohammad Jaffer and three others one each belonging to PPP and PML-N and a Legislative Council Mohammad member Ali Akhtar, who is also the Chief Election Commissioner of the Northern Areas, under Article 184 (3) of the Constitution through Advocate Mohammad Ikram Chaudhry.
The petitioners submitted that the creation of six special seats for technocrats in the Legislative Council of the NAs through a resolution passed on November 15, 2005 was undemocratic and against the law as well as constitutional practice prevalent in the other democratic institutions of the country.
Despite rejection of the creation of six seats for technocrats by majority of the Members, the Bill was sent to the Chief Executive for assent, which was illegal, the petitioners stated.
They said the creation of six seats for women through indirect polling from the each district of NAs, was also questionable.
The petitioners said the amendment made by the respondents by creating six technocrat seats in the Council by amending the Legal Framework Order, 1994 through a notification on March 6, 2006 was against the law settled by the superior courts as well as Legal Framework Order, 1994.
The amendment made in the Council's LFO 1994 does not conceive of independent executive nor does it cater for an independent legislative body, the petition said.
It said the amendment was against the fundamental rights of the citizens as well as democracy, besides the denial of the status of an independent body.
The petitioners prayed to the court to declare the amendment to the Council as illegal and ultra vires to the Constitution.
They also prayed that the program for holding elections issued by the Secretary NAs and Kashmir Affairs Division on March 6, 2006 be cancelled by declaring void.
Comments
Comments are closed.