The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Friday told the Lahore High Court that a reference filed by the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) for the disqualification of its MPAs was being scrutinized.
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A reply of the ECP submitted to the court in response to a petition of the PTI stated that it would take at least 30 days to decide the reference sent by the party.
Justice Shujaat Ali Khan had on April 27 sought a reply from the ECP.
However, the judge was on leave on Friday and the hearing was adjourned till May 6.
PTI-Punjab parliamentary leader Sibtain Khan filed the petition through Advocate Amir Saeed Rawn.
The counsel argued that the party sent a reference to the ECP for the disqualification of its 26 MPAs for committing defection in the election of the chief minister. He said the ECP had been delaying the process for the disqualification of the dissident MPAs.
He asked the court to order the ECP to expedite the disqualification process and also suspend the membership of the respondent MPAs till a final decision of the petition.
Meanwhile, a sessions court on Friday extended pre-arrest bail of nine MPAs of Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf and PML-Q till May 17 in a case of attacking Deputy Speaker Dost Muhammad Mazari and ransacking the assembly during a last week session to elect new chief minister.
Qilla Gujjar Singh police registered a case against the assembly’s secretary and several MPAs belonging to the previous government coalition.
MPAs including Ammar Yasir, Shahbaz Ahmad, Mahindar Singh, Waris Aziz, Khayal Ahmad, Shujaat Nawaz, Ali Raza Khan Khaqwani, Umar Farooq and Malik Nadeem Abbas had already been granted bail.
Meanwhile, the court reserved its verdict on a petition of Punjab Assembly Speaker Chaudhry Pervez Elahi seeking registration of a FIR of alleged torture on him during the election of chief minister.
Earlier, Qila Gujjar Singh police filed a report saying a FIR against the incident of violence in the Punjab Assembly had already been registered and the investigation was underway. It urged the court to dismiss the petition of Mr. Elahi as he did not appear before the police.
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Mr. Elahi through a counsel contended that the police refused to lodge a case on his application. He said the police acted at the behest of ‘Leader of Opposition’ Hamza Shehbaz.
He asked the court to order the police to register a case against the culprits involved in the attack on the speaker and other MPAs of PML-Q and PTI.
