Nawaz Sharif's nomination papers got the green light from the election commission, even amid suspense over his eligibility for the February 8 general elections, given the prior 'life-long disqualification' from the apex court.
"PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif's nomination papers for NA-130 (National Assembly seat from Lahore) have been accepted by the Election Commission," Sharif's lawyer Amjad Pervez told reporters on Tuesday.
He said, Sharif who returned to the country this October from London where he spent four years in self-exile on medical grounds , no objections to 73-year-old Sharif's candidature have been raised.
"Nawaz Sharif will now contest both from Lahore and Mansahra city of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa," he said.
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Different perspectives surround Nawaz Sharif’s disqualification
When questioned about Sharif's lifetime disqualification from contesting polls, Pervez said , "Sharif's disqualification has ended after his acquittal in corruption references against him."
Barrister Zafarullah Khan claimed that Sharif can participate in elections, citing an amendment to the Elections Act by the previous Pakistan Democratic Movement-led government. This amendment to Section 232 of the Elections Act limits disqualifications to five years.
{{/usCountry}}Barrister Zafarullah Khan claimed that Sharif can participate in elections, citing an amendment to the Elections Act by the previous Pakistan Democratic Movement-led government. This amendment to Section 232 of the Elections Act limits disqualifications to five years.
{{/usCountry}}However, senior lawyer Raja Inam Ameen Minhas argued that the amended law cannot benefit Sharif, as the legislature did not retrospectively amend Section 232. He explained that since the amendment involves penal consequences, it cannot address past matters.
Another senior lawyer, Kashif Ali Malik, stressed that the lifelong interpretation in the Elections Act cannot interpret, override, or defeat constitutional provisions.
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PTI’s bat symbol reinstated
The Peshawar High Court granted a significant relief to Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), reinstating its 'bat' election symbol and suspending the Election Commission of Pakistan's (ECP) order labeling intra-party polls as "illegal."
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The court said that the party's election symbol will be restored in a final decision on the petition, adding that a double bench will hear the matter after winter vacations.
(Inputs from wires)