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As the February 8 general elections inch closer, PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif cleared another hurdle on Wednesday after objection to his candidature from NA-130 (Lahore) was dismissed while incarcerated PTI founder Imran Khan\u2019s appeals against the rejection of his nomination papers from two National Assembly seats was upheld.<\/p>\n
The development comes on the last day to dispose of appeals filed against acceptance or rejection of nomination papers for the upcoming polls.<\/p>\n
According to the election schedule, the preliminary list of candidates will be displayed tomorrow and candidates can withdraw their nomination papers till Friday, Radio Pakistan<\/em> reported<\/a>. Electoral symbols would be allotted on Saturday, it said.<\/p>\n Today, an appellate tribunal, while announcing its verdict reserved<\/a> a day earlier, rejected appeals against the acceptance of Nawaz\u2019s nomination papers from NA-130, Lahore.<\/p>\n Pakistan Awami Mahaz chief Ishtiaq Ahmad Chaudhry, a lawyer, had filed the appeal under section 63 of the Election Act 2017, arguing that the PML-N supremo could not contest polls due to lifetime disqualification held by the Supreme Court for a person disqualified under article 62 (1) (f) of the Constitution.<\/p>\n However, now that the apex court has ended<\/a> lifetime disqualification for lawmakers, Appellate Tribunal Judge Ahmad Nadeem Arshad turned down the plea.<\/p>\n Similarly, an appeal filed against the acceptance of nomination papers filed by Nawaz\u2019s daughter Maryam for NA-119 (Lahore) was also rejected. Appellant Nadeem Altaf Khan had challenged the acceptance of Maryam\u2019s candidature, accusing her of not disclosing complete details of her properties.<\/p>\n On Tuesday, the election appellate tribunal in Abbottabad had set aside<\/a> PTI\u2019s objections raised on Nawaz\u2019s eligibility to contest elections from NA-15. The tribunal judge, Justice Kamran Hayat Miankhel, cleared the PML-N supreme leader for polls after hearing arguments.<\/p>\n On the other hand, former premier Imran\u2019s appeals against the rejection of his nomination papers for two seats, NA-122 (Lahore) and NA-89 (Mianwali), were dismissed. Two separate appellate tribunals upheld the returning officers\u2019 (RO) decision to reject Imran nomination papers.<\/p>\n According to the verdict issued by the appellate tribunal for NA-89 (Mianwali) \u2014 a copy of which is available with Dawn.com<\/em> \u2014 nomination papers submitted by Imran \u201cmet the fate of rejection through the impugned order passed by the returning officer during the process of scrutiny carried out in terms of Section 62 of the Elections Act 2017\u201d.<\/p>\n Authored by Appellate Tribunal Judge Chaudhry Abdul Aziz, the order said the rejection of the nomination paper was \u201cmainly structured upon the ground that since the appellant stands convicted in a case with sentence of three years, thus is disqualified under Article 63(10) of the Constitution for becoming a member of parliament\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cThis tribunal is created under Section 63(1) of the Elections Act, 2017 having powers limited only to examine the legality of orders passed by the returning officers under Section 62.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cSection 63 of the Elections Act, 2017 places a clog upon this tribunal to decide only the legality of the finding given by the returning officer regarding the rejection or acceptance of nomination papers,\u201d it added.<\/p>\n The order pointed out that the judgment of the conviction [against Imran] was passed by a court beyond the territorial and legal limits of the tribunal. It further noted that the nomination papers of Imran were \u201crightly rejected\u201d by the RO of NA-89. \u201cAs a necessary consequence, the instant election appeal stands dismissed,\u201d the tribunal added.<\/p>\n On December 30, Imran\u2019s nomination papers for both the NA seats were rejected<\/a>. The verdict issued by the RO for NA-122 stated that the papers were rejected on \u201cmoral\u201d and other grounds.<\/p>\nImran faces rejection<\/h2>\n