AJK Assembly Speaker disqualified to contest election
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MUZAFFARABAD (APP): The High Court of Azad Jammu and Kashmir Monday has disqualified Speaker AJK Legislative Assembly Sardar Ghulam Sadiq to contest elections of Legislative Assembly scheduled to be held on July 21.
A division bench comprising on Justice M Tabasam Aftaab Alvi and Justice Azhar Saleem Babar while accepting a writ petition of Pakistan Muslim League (N) candidate from LA-18 Poonch 11 Hajeera, Sardar Khan Bhadar Khan ordered the Chief Election Commissioner to delete Sadiq's name from the list of validly nominated candidates of the same constituency.
Speaker Legislative Assembly was the candidate of Pakistan Peoples Party from LA-18 Poonch 11 whose opponent Pakistan Muslim League (N)'s candidate Sardar Khan Bhadar Khan had challenged his candidature before Returning Officer but was rejected and then appeal against the judgment of Returning Officer was also rejected by the Chief Election Commissioner.
Sardar Khan Bhadar Khan had filed a writ petition in the High Court through his Counsel Rahat Farooq Advocate against the Judgments of Returning Officer and Chief Election Commissioner and prayed the apex court to disqualify him as his honesty was under question.
The judgment of the learned bench said the respondent Sardar Ghulam Sadiq had drawn dual salaries in the capacity of Member Assembly and as Adviser to Chairman Kashmir Council/Prime Minister of Pakistan, one of which he returned back but he violated the clause (f) of sub section (2) of section 4 of interim Constitution Act 1974.
The order further said that under section 5 (1) of ordinance 1970, a person would not be qualified to be elected or chosen as a Member of Legislative Assembly unless he is sagacious, righteous, non-profligate , "Honest and Ameen" and since the respondent did not possess these qualities under the circumstance and at the time of filling of nomination papers was not eligible to contest election.
The Court observed that Sardar Ghulam Sadiq was not qualified at the time of filling of nomination papers by virtue of section 24 (2) (f) of AJK's interim Constitution 1974 therefore, the learned court set aside the impugned orders of Returning Officer and Chief Election Commissioner and directed the election Commission to delete his name from the list of eligible candidates from the constituency LA-18 Poonch 11.