News Desk |
The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) challenged on Thursday the appointment of Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N)’s Maryam Nawaz as party’s vice president before the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP). PTI members Farrukh Habib, Javeria Zafar, Maleeka Bokhari and Kanwal Shauzab submitted a petition before ECP against Maryam’s party position in line with PTI leadership’s earlier reservations against her appointment.
In the petition, the applicants have stated that Maryam’s selection as the PML-N vice president was in contradiction with laws and the constitution. The petitioners have maintained that the Maryam was not eligible to hold any political or public office as an accountability court has convicted her in a National Accountability Bureau (NAB) reference.
In Sindh, the former finance minister Miftah Ismail was appointed as PML-N general secretary and Ali Akbar Gujjar as senior vice president.
On May 6, PTI had decided to challenge the PML-N’s decision to appoint Maryam as one of the party’s 16 vice presidents. Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi had told media that PTI was preparing to challenge the PML-N’s move to ‘grant a party post to a convicted person’, adding that the ruling party was exploring different options.
“We have the option to take this up in the Parliament, the Election Commission of Pakistan, or the country’s courts,” he had said. “She [Maryam] has been convicted by the country’s courts and is not eligible to hold a party position. She has been granted temporary relief by the court; her conviction has not been reversed,” Qureshi had maintained.
Read more: Maryam Nawaz slams PTI with a song ‘Yaad Tu Ati Hogi’
Sharifs Convicted in Avenfield Reference
In the judgment on the Avenfield Apartments reference, the accountability court had sentenced former prime minister Nawaz Sharif to 10 years rigorous imprisonment, his daughter Maryam to seven years rigorous imprisonment and son-in-law, Captain (retd) Muhammad Safdar, to one-year rigorous imprisonment.
The accused were also disqualified to contest election or to hold public office for a period of 10 years to be reckoned from the date they are released after serving the sentence and they shall not be allowed to apply for or to be granted or allowed any financial facilities in the form of a loan for a period of 10 years from the date of their conviction within the meaning of section 15 of NAO 1999.
The PTI challenged on Thursday the appointment of PML-N’s Maryam Nawaz as party’s vice president before the ECP.
After being convicted in the London properties reference by the accountability court, the IHC suspended the sentence until the final decision on the appeals against the judgment.
Read more: PML-N reshuffle: Maryam Nawaz becomes vice president
PML-N Reshuffle
Former PM Sharif’s daughter Maryam became a vice president of the PML-N in a major reshuffle of the party on April 29. For the first time, Nawaz’s daughter and PML-N President Shehbaz Sharif’s son Hamza Shehbaz were appointed as vice presidents of the party, among several others.
Among other changes, former PM Shahid Khaqan Abbasi was appointed senior vice president of the PML-N, ex-interior minister Ahsan Iqbal was made general secretary, ex-finance minister Ishaq Dar was tasked to take over responsibilities as president of the party’s International Affairs Committee while Marriyum Aurangzeb retained the position of secretary information and the party’s spokesperson.
Read more: PTI to challenge ‘convicted’ Maryam’s party position
The reorganization came after the party surrendered two important parliamentary positions due to party president Shehbaz’s expected long stay in London for getting medical treatment and the Supreme Court’s decision to turn down Nawaz’s review petition seeking court’s permission to go to UK for medical treatment. Dar, who is facing graft cases in Pakistan is already living in self-exile in London.
Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi had told media that PTI was preparing to challenge the PML-N’s move to ‘grant a party post to a convicted person’, adding that the ruling party was exploring different options.
A statement from the party had said that the president made the announcement after consultation with PML-N Quaid Nawaz Sharif over the decisions. In the party reshuffle, Shehbaz, Abbasi and Dar were also made members of the PML-N Economic Advisory Council. Ahsan Iqbal, Khawaja Asif, Qaiser Ahmed Sheikh, Muhammad Zubair, Miftah Ismail, Ayesha Ghaus-Pasha, Mushahid Hussain Syed, Musadik Malik, Ali Pervez Malik and Bilal Azhar Kiyani were also made members of the EAC.
Noor Ul Hassan Tanvir was made general secretary international affairs. Pervez Malik was chosen as the secretary finance and Tariq Fatemi as secretary policy and research. Several key positions were allocated to people regarded close to former premier Nawaz Sharif.
Read more: Nawaz is back to Kot Lakhpat: PML-N has formally launched Maryam Nawaz
Apart from Maryam and Hamza, the 14 other vice presidents of the party include Abid Sher Ali, Ayaz Sadiq, Chaudhry Barjees Tahir, Dr Darshan Lal Punchi, Khawaja Saad Rafiq, Khurram Dastgir, Mian Javed Latif, Muhammad Zubair, Mushahid Ullah Khan, Nelson Azeem, Pervaiz Rasheed, Raheela Durrani, Rana Tanveer Hussain, and Sardar Mehtab Ahmed Khan.
The reorganization came after the party surrendered two important parliamentary positions due to party president Shehbaz’s expected long stay in London.
Baleeghur Rahman and Attaullah Tarar were made deputy secretary generals while Bilal Azhar Kiyani, Farhan Zafar Jhagra and Sorath Thebo are appointed as assistant secretary generals. The joint secretaries are Abbas Afridi and Talal Chaudhry.
Read more: Govt is in panic over Maryam Nawaz’s party position
Punjab’s ex-law minister Rana Sanaullah Khan was appointed as the PML-N Punjab president, Hanif Abbasi as senior vice president and Sardar Awais Leghari as general secretary. Raja Ateeq Sarwar, Hafiz Nauman, Khawaja Salman Rafi and Raja Qamarul Islam have been named as the vice presidents.
Azma Bukhari was appointed as Punjab secretary information. In Sindh, the former finance minister Miftah Ismail was appointed as PML-N general secretary and Ali Akbar Gujjar as senior vice president. Salman Ali Khan and Nasiruddin Mehmood were made PML-N’s Karachi president and general secretary, respectively.