ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court Monday issued notices to respondents in a plea moved by former foreign minister Khawaja Asif challenging Islamabad High Court decision of his disqualification in the Iqama case.
A three-member bench comprising Justice Umer Ata Bandial, Justice Faisal Arab and Justice Sajjad Ali Shah also refused to grant a stay order on the IHC disqualification verdict.
During course of proceedings, Muneer A Malik counsel for the petitioner requested the bench that a stay should be granted on the PML-N leader’s disqualification verdict until the outcome of this bench. He also requested the court to hear the case at it earliest instead of adjourning the matter for a month.
However, the court while issuing the notices to respondents including Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Usman Dar, who was the petitioner behind the disqualification, adjourned the matter for two weeks.
Khawaja Asif pleaded in his petition that he had unintentionally failed to mention his foreign bank account in the nomination papers.
The PML-N leader, however, said he had already declared his foreign bank account and UAE-based work permit even before the petition was filed against him.
The former foreign minister pleaded the top court to strike down the Islamabad High Court verdict and subsequent ECP’s notification and restore his membership of National Assembly.
On April 26, Khawaja Asif was disqualified by the Islamabad High Court on the basis of holding an Abu Dhabi Iqama (work permit).
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s Usman Dar had filed this petition seeking disqualification of Asif for concealing the facts that he was an Iqama holder, legal advisor of a company in UAE and his recent labour card was issued on June 29, 2017.
Khawaja Asif on the other hand took the view that he concealed nothing and his Iqama was declared in the nomination paper.
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