Lahore: In a surprise move, the government in Pakistan’s Punjab province on Monday filed a petition in the Lahore High Court for the deferment of by-elections to four provincial and national assembly constituencies due to security concerns.
Former premier and PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif, the elder brother of Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif, was among those planning to enter the Parliament through the by-polls. The PML-N currently rules Punjab.
"How can the PML-N government in Punjab move the court against the decision of the Election Commission when its chief will be the main beneficiary of winning the by-polls?" a PML-N leader said.
"A majority of people in the party are surprised over the move and can’t understand the mind of the leadership," the leader said.
The move could stop Nawaz from reaching the Lower House of Parliament, he added.
When the Supreme Court barred Nawaz from contesting elections earlier this year, he had described the verdict as part of a "conspiracy on the part of President Asif Ali Zardari".
Pakistan Awami Party chief and former minister Shiekh Rashid Ahmed, who was planning to contest the by-polls, told a news conference that Nawaz had no wish to enter the National Assembly because he did not want to raise key issues in Parliament.
Lamenting the actions of the Punjab government, Ahmed urged the Supreme Court Chief Justice to take suo moto notice of the matter and expose the so-called "democratic" parties.
The by-polls are scheduled for early next month. The High Court will hear the case filed by the Punjab government tomorrow.
Khwaja Haris and Mustafa Ramday filed the petition on behalf of the provincial government. The government pleaded that the law and order situation was not conducive to holding the by-polls.
It also said in the petition that the Chief Election Commissioner had not consulted the provincial government about the holding of the elections.
Bureau Report
