ISLAMABAD: The election for the Punjab chief minister would be held on July 22, 2022, till that time Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz leader Hamza Shehbaz will remain the CM Punjab as parties – the PML-N, the PML-Q, and the PTI reached consensus.
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf Chairman Imran Khan and the Speaker Punjab Provincial Assembly, Pervaiz Elahi, who is joint candidate of PTI and PML-Q for the CM post, agreed to the Supreme Court’s proposal that till the polling, Hamza will remain as the chief minister of Punjab.
The court turned down PTI leader Fawad Chaudhry’s plea that till July 22, Hamza should be deemed as interim Chief Minister of Punjab. The chief justice said they will not use the word “interim CM” for Hamza Shehbaz. The Court, however, expressed satisfaction over the acceptance of its proposal by all the parties to hold the CM poll on July 22.
The LHC, a day ago (on June 30, 2022) had passed an order requiring the Punjab Assembly to convene the session today (July 1) to recount the votes cast in the April 16 election of Punjab chief minister after excluding the votes of PTI dissident lawmakers.
The high court said if the required majority for Hamza — which is 186 votes in the 371-member strong house — to stay the CM is not secured after recounting, which is a certainty after the exclusion of 25 votes cast by dissident PTI lawmakers, the election will be held again under Article 130(4).
The PTI MPAs challenged the high court’s order in the Supreme Court today (July 1), which the SC office accepted and fixed for hearing at 1:30 pm before a three-judge bench, headed by Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial.
PTI members, Mohammad Sibtain Khan, Zainab Umair, Mian Muhammad Aslam Iqbal, Syed Abbas Ali Shah, and Ahsan Saleem Baryar asked the apex court to modify the LHC’s order to the “extent of provision of adequate and sufficient time to hold [the PA] session” so that members could be issued notices and were able to “exercise their right to vote for the election of the Punjab chief minister in [a] fair and transparent manner”.
PML-N's Hamza Shehbaz elected Punjab chief minister
The apex court’s bench on Friday held three sessions allowing the PTI and Pervaiz Elahi’s counsels to consider various options, floated by it, and to seek instructions from the party high command when to hold the CM poll. At the end of the proceeding, the chief justice said the politicians should resolve their dispute themselves, otherwise accept the Court’s decision on the political issues they bring before the bench.
Babar Awan, representing the PTI, in the second session, said that Hamza is not acceptable to the party at all. He asked the bench to restore Usman Buzdar as CM or install an interim setup in Punjab or the Governor be asked to run the affairs of the province till the election of the new chief minister.
The bench dismissed his pleas. The chief justice said will not restore Buzdar, adding in the parliamentary form of government the Governor under the constitution has no power to run the affairs of the province.
The Court then warned it would pass an order to hold a poll for the CM Punjab in two days or till by-election (July 17), as demanded by the PTI and the PML-Q, Hamza continued as the chief minister. Babar Awan then requested the Court to allow him 15 minutes to seek instruction from the party high command (Imran Khan) regarding the matter. The bench accepting his plea adjourned the case for half an hour.
After the break advocate Imtiaz Siddique, who also represented Pervaiz Elahi and some PTI MPAs, via video link from Lahore Registry, said that he had a discussion with the Advocate General Punjab and Hamza’s lawyer and it’s been agreed that the polling for CM would be held three of four days after the bye-elections. Until that time Hamza can act as CM
Copyright Business Recorder, 2022
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