Senator Ghulam Ali disqualified from contesting FPCCI elections

ISLAMABAD: Islamabad Chamber of Small Traders on Saturday said Director General Trade Organisations (DGTO) has disqualified the presidential candidate for FPCCI Senator Haji Ghulam Ali.

The Senator was the presidential candidate of the Businessmen Panel (BMP) of the FPCCI which has lost three elections to United Business Group (UBG) in a row, it said.

The decision of the department working under Federal Ministry of Commerce will help UBG secure victory for the fourth time while it will demoralise the supporters of BMP, said Patron Islamabad Chamber of Small Traders Shahid Rasheed Butt.

He said that presidential candidate of the UBG Ghazanfar Bilour had raised an objection on the nomination papers of the Senator Ghulam Ali but the election commission set aside his complaint.

Subsequently, he filed a petition in the office of the Regulator DGTO Waqar Ahmed Shah challenging the decision of the election commission.

He prayed that Mr Ghulam Ali has contested FPCCI elections from Fata and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and now he is doing it from the platform of Chamber of Small Traders which is illegal and violation of the rights of the business community.

The regulator Mr Shah heard the arguments of both the sides and decided in favour of Mr Bilour setting aside the decision of the election commission of FPCCI.

Shahid Rasheed Butt said that the decision announced days before the annual election of the Apex Chamber is a blow to the BMP and now the covering candidate of BMP Zubair Ali who is the son of Ghulam Ali will face Ghazanfar Bilour in the elections.

It may be mentioned that Mr. Ghulam Ali had also raised objections on the nomination of Mr. Bilour which were rejected by the DGTO.

Yet, in another decision, the DGTO allowed Sartaj Khan of Chitral Chamber of Commerce representing BMP to contest elections of the VP FPCCI. Earlier his papers were rejected by the election commission of FPCCI.