Rejection of seven votes in Senate: AGP concludes arguments in Gilani’s ICA

ISLAMABAD: The Attorney General for Pakistan (AGP), on Wednesday, concluded arguments in Senator Yousaf Raza Gilani’s Intra-Court Appeal (ICA) challenging the rejections of seven votes in the Senate Chairman election.

A division bench of the Islamabad High Court (IHC) comprising Justice Aamer Farooq and Justice Tariq Mahmood Jahangiri hearing the ICA of Gilani against the IHC decision, wherein, it had turned down the PPP leader’s petition challenging the result of the elections for the chairman Senate.

The AGP (Khalid Jawed) during his arguments gave references of various judgments of apex courts.

He contended that the parliament’s proceedings could not be challenged at any forum under Article 69 of the constitution.

After his arguments, an assistant lawyer of Farooq H Naek advocate asked the AGP, is he representing the federation or the PTI.

Upon that Justice Aamer said the attorney general was not representing any party and if he does not agree with his arguments, then he should rebut them on constitutional grounds.

The IHC bench then deferred the hearing until July 9th.

Gilani’s lawyer Farooq H Naek, in the last hearing, had also cited the judgments of the courts of Bangladesh and London, besides the Supreme Court of Pakistan and submitted their copies in the court.

He adopted before the court that the presiding officer’s decision in the Senate elections could be challenged in court because the President of Pakistan had appointed Muzafar Hussain Shah to preside only the first session of the senate polls.

Naek said that the parliamentary proceedings had immunity under Article 69 of the Constitution but how it could be called a procedure when a particular voting method had not been mentioned in the rules.

Gillani’s counsel contended that the presiding officer belonged to the PPP’s opponent party and the rejection of seven votes by him was unlawful.

A single bench of IHC Chief Justice Athar Minallah had rejected Gilani’s petition by declaring the same non-maintainable.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2021