The Election Commission held hearings on violations of the code of conduct in the by-election today with a bench headed by the Chief Election Commissioner.
Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi was summoned to appear before the commission while a notice was issued to Shehrnaz, wife of former opposition leader Omar Ayub.
CM Sohail Afridi’s case
A five-member commission heard the case against the KP CM on allegations of threats to election staff and violation of code of conduct. Although Afridi was granted a waiver from personal appearance, his lawyers and those representing Shehrnaz Omar Ayub appeared before the commission.
Advocate General KP Shah Faisal Utmankhel sought an adjournment on behalf of Afridi’s lawyer Ali Bukhari citing a family death. But a KP member asked, “How can you represent a person in a private capacity in an official capacity?” The member added, “This is a personal case of one person, it has no relation to the state,” to which the attorney general said he is only seeking the reprieve on behalf of Ali Bukhari.
Read: CM Afridi’s lawyer calls ECP notification on violation of election code ‘unfounded’
The Chief Election Commissioner remarked, “Attorney General, you are needed in the province. What are you doing here?” A KP member added that the Chief Justice of Peshawar High Court has repeatedly noted the absence of the Advocate General.
Meanwhile, Shehrnaz’s lawyer filed a written reply after which the commission adjourned the hearing to December 16.
Shehrnaz Omar Ayub alleges rigging
In the NA-18 Election Irregularity Case, Shehrnaz Omar Ayub filed complaints of failure to issue Form 47 and alleged election fraud. The preliminary hearing was adjourned after her lawyer appeared before the commission.
Decision reserved on Javed Abbasi’s fine
Murtaza Javed Abbasi appeared with his lawyer to appeal the District Monitoring Officer’s (DMO’s) decision to impose a fine of Rs 40,000. for violating the code of conduct. Abbasi’s lawyer requested that the fine be annulled, arguing that his client only “mentioned the threatening statement of the KP CM.”
The Commission reserved its decision in the matter.
Muzaffargarh Candidate Seeks Counting
Independent candidate Iqbal Khan Patafi, who secured 46,407 votes in PP-269 Muzaffargarh, appeared before the commission in person and requested a recount. PPP candidate Mian Alamdar Abbas Qureshi won the by-election in the constituency.
Read more: PML-N sees big win in by-polls today
Patafi claimed that relatives of his opponent were assigned polling duties, untrained staff were deployed and ballots sent to polling stations were fewer than the number of registered voters.
“The election of PP-269 has always been controversial; opinions were sought from various forums,” Patafi told the media outside the Election Commission. He added that “even in the past, the candidates who won have stepped down on my request for a recount and now elections were held again.”
The hearing was adjourned by the five-member commission until December 16.
PM aide challenges Rs 50,000 fine
The hearing of an appeal against a fine of Rs. 50,000 imposed on Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Culture Huzaifa Rehman, for violations of the Election Code in NA-185 Muzaffargarh was also held.
Rehman’s lawyer appeared before the Election Commission on his behalf and the hearing was also adjourned to December 16.
