PTI dissident MPAs challenge disqualification in Supreme Court

ISLAMABAD: PTI’s dissident MPAs on Wednesday appealed against the election commission’s decision to de-seat them in the Supreme Court of Pakistan, ARY News reported.

A three-member bench of the apex court headed by Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial heard petition of PTI dissidents, who changed their lawyer and hired Advocate Umar Aslam for arguments on their cases.

CJP Bandial welcomed advocate Umar Aslam and said that the new members have already been elected after the dissidents were de-seated by the election commission. “I have been nominated their lawyer last night,” advocate Aslam told the court.

“We are giving you time for preparation of the case. The court has to review an interesting question,” chief justice Bandial said. “Also nominate the new elected members as party,” the top judge said.

The court allowed dissident member Mohsin Ata Khosa to take back his appeal and adjourned further hearing of the case for an indefinite period.

The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) had de-seated 25 dissident MPAs of PTI on May 20 this year, who voted for PML-N’s Hamza Shehbaz Sharif in Punjab chief minister’s election.

The reference against deviant members was filed by Speaker Punjab Assembly Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi.

The dissident Punjab lawmakers de-seated by the ECP included Abdul Aleem Khan, Nazir Ahmed Chohan, Uzma Kardar, Faisal Hayat, Raja Sagheer Ahmed, Malik Ghulam Rasool Sangha, Saeed Akbar Khan, Mohammad Ajmal, Mohammad Amin Zulqernain, Malik Nauman Langrial, Mohammad Salman, Zawar Hussain Warraich, Nazir Ahmed Khan, Fida Hussain, Zahra Batool, Mohammad Tahir, Aisha Nawaz, Sajida Yousaf, Haroon Imran Gill, Malik Asad Ali, Ijaz Masih, Mohammad Sibtain Raza, Mohsin Atta Khan Khosa, Mian Khalid Mehmood and Mehar Mohammad Aslam.