ISLAMABAD: Expressing disappointment at the withdrawal of the petition seeking annulment of the February 8 elections, Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Qazi Faez Isa instructed the authorities to locate the complainant and produce him to the Supreme Court at the next session.
CJP Isa stressed that the highest court cannot be subjected to such mocking and urged the authorities to “find and present the complainant before the court,” emphasizing that the Supreme Court will consider this issue.
The top judge’s observations come as a three-member bench of the Supreme Court (SC), chaired by the chief justice and comprising Justice Musarrat Hilali and Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar, conducted the hearing on Brig (retd) Ali Khan’s plea seeking re-elections over the matter of suspected cheating in the polls.
The Rawalpindi Division has 13 National Assembly seats, 11 of which were won by Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) candidates. The remaining seats were won by one independent candidate and the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP). The division also includes 27 provincial seats, 15 of which the PML-N won and 11 of which went to independent candidates.
During today’s session, CJP Isa questioned whether the petition was submitted solely for publicity.
“The complainant [had] released the petition to the media as soon as it was filed,” the top judge noted, asking authorities to make contact with the petitioner by phone.
The top judge further asked the extra attorney general to liaise with the relevant station house officer (SHO) and present the complainant in court.
“Who knows if the complainant actually submitted the petition? […] “What if he says he hasn’t withdrawn the petition?” the chief justice asked.
During the hearing, the supreme court was informed that the petitioner could not be reached at his indicated phone number or address, despite having received a notification from the Defence Ministry.
