Islamabad: Pakistan’s Supreme Court on Friday dismissed legal challenges to President General Pervez Musharraf’s bid for a new five-year term.
“These petitions are held to be non-maintainable,’’ presiding Judge Rana Bhagwandas told the court, drawing howls of protest from lawyers.
“Shame, shame!’’ and “Go, Mushharraf, go!’’ they said as they pumped their fists in the air in the packed, cavernous courtroom.
The 6-3 decision in favour of the military leader allows him to contest the October 6 election while remaining army chief and removes the main obstacle to his staying in office.
Reasoning later
Bhagwandas said the court would explain its reasoning later.
Information Minister Mohammed Ali Durrani urged people to respect the ruling. Attorney General Malik Mohammed Qayyum said the way was clear now for Musharraf to run.
“Absolutely, there is no hurdle for it,’’ Qayyum said.
The government has insisted all along that Musharraf, who took power in a 1999 coup, is a qualified candidate. Critics have countered that he cannot run because he has retained his position as powerful army chief.
With his popularity and clout eroding, the General has said he would shed his uniform if he wins a new presidential term in the vote by federal and provincial legislators. Government lawyers said he would continue as army chief if he is not re-elected.
Friday’s ruling bitterly disappointed activists from the opposition and the legal fraternity who saw the ruling as an acid test of whether the military could be divorced from politics.
Farid Piracha, a lawmaker from Pakistan’s biggest religious party Jamaat-e-Islami, which had filed one of the petitions challenging Musharraf’s eligibility to run, said he refused to accept the ruling.
“The judges have not fulfilled their constitutional obligation,’’ Piracha said. “Now our fight against dictatorship will be on the streets ... This decision does not reflect the people’s sentiments, and it will not be accepted.’’
Opposition threat
Javed Hashmi, acting leader of exiled former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s party, said their lawmakers would resign from Parliament — an opposition strategy aiming to rob the election of legitimacy. “We will submit our resignations and not become part of this illegal election process,’’ Hashmi said outside the court.
A lawyer for Imran Khan decried the ruling as a taint on the judiciary that had asserted itself when Musharraf attempted to oust the chief justice.
Lawyers say that if the Election Commission approves Musharraf’s candidacy on Saturday, the only legal recourse would be to challenge it in a provincial high court, which could take months. The commission has already changed presidential election rules in Musharraf’s favour.
The capital appeared calm on Friday. A massive security lockdown the previous day designed to prevent anti-Musharraf protests was lifted following an order by the Supreme Court.
Musharraf’s legislative ally filed his nomination papers on Thursday.
Another 42 candidates also filed to contest the vote, including retired Justice Wajihuddin Ahmed, nominated by lawyers, and Makhdoom Amin Fahim of PPP. But the PPP has said Fahim would only run if Musharraf were disqualified.
Bookies’ favourite in presidential poll
Bookies in Pakistan are betting heavily in favour of President Pervez Musharraf being re-elected in the crucial presidential elections on October 6. Odds are five to one in favour of Musharraf, while odds of one to 40 ride on Amin Fahim, the presidential candidate put up by the Benazir Bhutto-led PPP and Wajeehuddin Ahmed, who is supported by the lawyers.
Bookies have received bets worth crores of rupees on who will be the next president and what crucial decisions will be taken in the near future, Geo TV said. -PTI
Benazir’s party questions Musharraf’s educational qualifications
The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) has raised doubts over the educational qualification papers submitted by President Pervez Musharraf for the crucial presidential election, urging the Election Commission to closely scrutinise the General’s bachelor’s degree. “We have demanded scrutiny of the bachelor’s degree and a statement of assets of General Musharraf that is needed to be submitted to the Election Commission at the time of filing nomination papers,” PPP Senator Babar Awan said.
Awan said he had raised this issue with Chief Election Commissioner, Justice (retd) Qazi Muhammad Farooq, while submitting the nomination papers of Makhdoom Amin Fahim, the PPP’s presidential candidate to challenge Musharraf. - PTI
http://www.mumbaimirror.com/net/mmp...4&contentid=2007092920070929023410140bf272584
“These petitions are held to be non-maintainable,’’ presiding Judge Rana Bhagwandas told the court, drawing howls of protest from lawyers.
“Shame, shame!’’ and “Go, Mushharraf, go!’’ they said as they pumped their fists in the air in the packed, cavernous courtroom.
The 6-3 decision in favour of the military leader allows him to contest the October 6 election while remaining army chief and removes the main obstacle to his staying in office.
Bhagwandas said the court would explain its reasoning later.
Information Minister Mohammed Ali Durrani urged people to respect the ruling. Attorney General Malik Mohammed Qayyum said the way was clear now for Musharraf to run.
“Absolutely, there is no hurdle for it,’’ Qayyum said.
The government has insisted all along that Musharraf, who took power in a 1999 coup, is a qualified candidate. Critics have countered that he cannot run because he has retained his position as powerful army chief.
With his popularity and clout eroding, the General has said he would shed his uniform if he wins a new presidential term in the vote by federal and provincial legislators. Government lawyers said he would continue as army chief if he is not re-elected.
Friday’s ruling bitterly disappointed activists from the opposition and the legal fraternity who saw the ruling as an acid test of whether the military could be divorced from politics.
Farid Piracha, a lawmaker from Pakistan’s biggest religious party Jamaat-e-Islami, which had filed one of the petitions challenging Musharraf’s eligibility to run, said he refused to accept the ruling.
“The judges have not fulfilled their constitutional obligation,’’ Piracha said. “Now our fight against dictatorship will be on the streets ... This decision does not reflect the people’s sentiments, and it will not be accepted.’’
Opposition threat
Javed Hashmi, acting leader of exiled former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s party, said their lawmakers would resign from Parliament — an opposition strategy aiming to rob the election of legitimacy. “We will submit our resignations and not become part of this illegal election process,’’ Hashmi said outside the court.
A lawyer for Imran Khan decried the ruling as a taint on the judiciary that had asserted itself when Musharraf attempted to oust the chief justice.
Lawyers say that if the Election Commission approves Musharraf’s candidacy on Saturday, the only legal recourse would be to challenge it in a provincial high court, which could take months. The commission has already changed presidential election rules in Musharraf’s favour.
The capital appeared calm on Friday. A massive security lockdown the previous day designed to prevent anti-Musharraf protests was lifted following an order by the Supreme Court.
Musharraf’s legislative ally filed his nomination papers on Thursday.
Another 42 candidates also filed to contest the vote, including retired Justice Wajihuddin Ahmed, nominated by lawyers, and Makhdoom Amin Fahim of PPP. But the PPP has said Fahim would only run if Musharraf were disqualified.
Bookies’ favourite in presidential poll
Bookies in Pakistan are betting heavily in favour of President Pervez Musharraf being re-elected in the crucial presidential elections on October 6. Odds are five to one in favour of Musharraf, while odds of one to 40 ride on Amin Fahim, the presidential candidate put up by the Benazir Bhutto-led PPP and Wajeehuddin Ahmed, who is supported by the lawyers.
Bookies have received bets worth crores of rupees on who will be the next president and what crucial decisions will be taken in the near future, Geo TV said. -PTI
Benazir’s party questions Musharraf’s educational qualifications
The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) has raised doubts over the educational qualification papers submitted by President Pervez Musharraf for the crucial presidential election, urging the Election Commission to closely scrutinise the General’s bachelor’s degree. “We have demanded scrutiny of the bachelor’s degree and a statement of assets of General Musharraf that is needed to be submitted to the Election Commission at the time of filing nomination papers,” PPP Senator Babar Awan said.
Awan said he had raised this issue with Chief Election Commissioner, Justice (retd) Qazi Muhammad Farooq, while submitting the nomination papers of Makhdoom Amin Fahim, the PPP’s presidential candidate to challenge Musharraf. - PTI
http://www.mumbaimirror.com/net/mmp...4&contentid=2007092920070929023410140bf272584