ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) on Friday filed an appeal in the Supreme Court (SC) against the Lahore High Court’s (LHC) decision of recounting the MPAs’ votes in Punjab Assembly for the election of Punjab chief minister by excluding the votes of 25 dissident PTI MPAs.
The PTI pleaded with the apex court to accept its appeal against the LHC’s decision. “The PTI assembly members must be given adequate time to attend the assembly session,” it demanded. “Hamza Shehbaz should be removed from the office so that a clean and transparent election could be held. The election of Punjab Chief Minister should be stopped till decision on the petition [appeal],” it added.
“Punjab Chief Minister Hamza Shehbaz Sharif’s notification of success should be suspended. The election of Chief Minister in Punjab Assembly should be suspended immediately,” it demanded further.
“A suitable time should be given to convene the assembly session by changing the decision of the high court. The parties in the case have the constitutional right to clean and transparent elections,” it added.
It is to be noted here that the appeal had been filed by the PTI lawyers – Faisal Chaudhry and Imtiaz Siddiqui, who prayed to court to take up their appeal today.
Earlier on Thursday, the LHC had declared the oath of Punjab Chief Minister Hamza Shehbaz as illegal and ordered recounting of votes for the election of Punjab’s chief minister held on April 16, directing that the votes of 25 dissident PTI MPAs be excluded from the recounting process. While commenting on the LHC’s decision, Fawad Chaudhry, a leader of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), said that the decision had amplified the political crisis in Punjab.
“Hamza’s government is gone, but this verdict will not end the crisis,” he had said in a tweet. “There are many flaws in the decision. A meeting of the party’s legal meeting has been called. We will approach the Supreme Court regarding flaws in the high court’s decision,” he had added.