Accountability court allows Khwaja Asif, Shehbaz Sharif to take part in Senate polls

(Karachi) An accountability court has granted permission to PML-N president Shehbaz Sharif and MNA Khawaja Asif to take part in the Senate elections being held tomorrow, local media reported on Tuesday.

The jail authorities approached the court seeking its permission to take Shehbaz Sharif to Islamabad to enable him to cast his ballot in the elections for the upper house of Parliament. They said the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has called for bringing him to the National Assembly for the purpose.

After an initial hearing, the court permitted the opposition leader to be taken to Islamabad to take part in the polls.

Separately, the court also approved a similar plea, allowing Khawaja Asif to travel to the federal capital to cast his vote.

Over 65 per cent of the senators who are set to retire on March 11 after completing their six-year constitutio­nal term belong to the opposition parties.

The number of Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf senators may double after the electoral exercise to reach 28 from existing 14, while the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz is likely to be the biggest loser in terms of representation in the Senate as 17 of its 29 senators will retire next month and the party would be able to retain just five, taking the total strength to 17.

The Pakistan Peoples Party’s strength in the house will slightly come down from 21 to 19. Among the allies of the ruling party, the Muttahida Qaumi Movement will be the only loser, with its party’s strength slipping down from five to three, while another ally, Balochistan Awami Party (BAP), will emerge stronger, with the number of its senators growing from 10 to 13.