The Supreme Court on Thursday resumed hearing a set of petitions calling for holding elections within 90 days after the dissolution of the National Assembly and the provincial legislatures. A three-judge bench comprising Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Qazi Faez Isa, Justice Amin-ud-Din Khan and Justice Athar Minallah took up the pleas moved by the Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA), the PTI, Munir Ahmad and Ibad-ur-Rehman. At the previous hearing, the court had issued notices to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) and the federal government for their input on polls within 90 days. The CJP had observed there were no two opinions that “all of us want elections, but a wrong impression is being created that we are not interested”.

As the hearing resumed today, PPP lawyer Farooq H. Naek appeared in the apex court and requested to become a respondent in the case. He was given a green light from the judges after PTI’s Barrister Ali Zafar said he had no objections to the request. Zafar then began presenting his arguments. At the outset, he contended that polls should be held within 90 days. However, CJP Isa said, “Your request for polls within 90 days has now become ineffective.” The PTI lawyer insisted that his argument was connected with a fundamental right, to which Justice Isa asked if the former just wanted elections now. Zafar replied in the affirmative. “Will anyone oppose it?” the chief justice asked. In his reply, the PTI counsel said no. The CJP then asked Attorney General for

Pakistan Mansoor Usman Awan if he had any objections to polls, to which the latter also replied in the negative. Continuing his arguments, Zafar said Articles 58 (Dissolution of the National Assembly) and 224 (Time of election and by-election) could be read. “Without elections, neither can the Parliament run nor can laws be formed,” he contended. He went on to say that there was a difference between giving a schedule for elections and announcing the poll date, adding that giving the election date was also mentioned in the Constitution.

 “The law ministry believes that the president cannot give a date for polls,” Zafar stated. He highlighted that as per the 90-day deadline, elections should be held on Nov 7. It must be noted President Dr Arif Alvi had written a letter to Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Sikandar Sultan Raja on September 13 wherein he proposed that elections be held by November 6. However, the Ministry of Law and Justice had Alvi had later informed Alvi that the powers to announce the poll date rested with the ECP, not the president.

During the hearing today, Justice Minallah asked why it took the president so long to write the letter to the ECP. On the other hand, the chief justice noted that the text of the said letter was “vague”. “Did the president approach us for an opinion [on the matter] from the Supreme Court?” CJP Isa asked, to which Zafar said this was not the case.

Credit: Independent News Pakistan (INP)