A full bench of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) heard identical petitions seeking the disqualification of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.
ECP’s full bench chaired by the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) retired Justice Sardar Mohammad Raza Khan clubbed all five petitions against the disqualification of Nawaz Sharif.
Out of five petitions, four petitions were only for the disqualification of prime minister, whereas one filed by Pakistan Peoples Party secretary general Sardar Latif Khosa was for the disqualification of PM Sharif and other family members, including Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif, his son Hamza Shahbaz, prime minister’s son-in-law retired Captain Mohammad Safdar and Finance Minister Ishaq Dar, who is the father-in-law of the prime minister’s daughter.
Other petitioners include the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), Sheikh Rashid Ahmed’s Awami Muslim League (AML), Tahirul Qadri’s Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT) and an individual petitioner, Prof Waheen Kamal.
Khosa in his argument before the election commission panel over the reference seeking disqualification of Nawaz Sharif said that Hassan Nawaz and Mariam Nawaz were minor when the offshore companies in their names were registered.
The PPP counsel argued that Nawaz Sharif in the column of assets had write that he has no home and living in the residence of his mother.
The lawyer also submitted documents to the election commission.
Pakistan People’s Party (PPP), Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI), Awami Muslim League and Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT) have filed references against the prime minister, seeking his disqualification.
The PPP has filed a 1000-page reference with the ECP, calling for disqualification of Prime Minister Sharif. The party maintains that Nawaz Sharif had defaulted Rs six billion when he filed his nomination papers with the ECP in 2013.