ISLAMABAD: The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Wednesday reserved its verdict on the petition seeking disqualification of senator-elect of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Ishaq Dar under articles 62 and 63 of the Constitution on the grounds that Dar was declared a defaulter by the Supreme Court in a case.

A four-member ECP bench comprising Nisar Ahmed Durrani, Shah Muhammad Jatoi, Babar Bharwana, and former Justice Ikramullah Khan heard the case.

Advocate Azhar Siddique, the petitioner against Dar in the case, was not present during the hearing, and was represented by his associate Advocate Mahfooz Bukhari.

In the proceedings, bench member Jatoi raised the question: How Dar could be disqualified from Senate membership “when he is not a senator in the first place.”

“Although, he (Dar) won the Senate election but he did not take the oath as a senator. He cannot become a senator unless he takes the oath. How can he be disqualified then?” Jatoi remarked.

Durrani, another bench member, observed that Siddique, the petitioner in the case, stated in the Lahore High Court (LHC) that the ECP was not deciding this case. “And today, he (Siddique) is not here. He complains about slow progress in the case but when the case is fixed for hearing, he is not here,” Durrani deplored.

Bukhari said that Dar did not submit a reply in the case and that action was required to be taken against him for being declared a defaulter by the apex court.

The bench then reserved its verdict, expected to be announced soon.

In December last year, Siddique moved the ECP against Dar. According to his petition, a three-judge SC bench headed by the then Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Saqib Nisar declared Dar as a defaulter in the year 2018 in a case related to the appointment of Attaul Haq Qasmi as managing director and chairman Pakistan Television Corporation (PTV).

The court, apart from Dar, also held the then Information Minister Pervaiz Rasheed and the then Principal Secretary to Prime Minister Fawad Hassan Fawad responsible for Qasmi’s appointment and the financial benefits he received.

The petitioner stated that he moved an application to Chairman Senate Sadiq Sanjrani on November 6 last year for filing a reference in the ECP for Dar’s disqualification on the basis that he was a defaulter in terms of the relevant provisions of Article 62 and 63. However, the chairman Senate never took any action, according to the petitioner.

The Senate chief was required to take action on the application within 30 days. In this context, Article 63 (2) provides that if any question arises whether a member of the Parliament has become disqualified, the speaker or the chairman Senate, shall, within 30 days, refer the question to the chief election commissioner.

Article 63 (3) provides that the CEC shall lay the question of disqualification of an MP before the ECP which shall give its decision not later than three months from its receipt by the CEC.

On February 2, Dar, through a letter, approached the Senate chief to convey his “readiness and willingness” to take the oath of his Senate membership virtually.

In reply to Dar’s letter, the chairman Senate, on February 22, declined Dar’s request—contending that the constitution did not have any provision of allowing virtual oath.

In March 2018, after Dar was elected as a senator on a technocrat seat in the Senate elections, Nawazish Pirzada from the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) challenged his election to the Senate in the SC on the grounds that he was declared an absconder by an accountability court in December 2017 in a corruption reference filed against him by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB).

Dar is in London since October 2017.

The SC suspended the notification of Dar’s election as Senator in May 2018.

Consequently, the ECP suspended the notification of his Senate membership.

In December last year, the apex court restored his membership of the Upper House of the Parliament following which the electoral body withdrew its notification of suspension of Dar’s Senate membership.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2022