ISLAMABAD, July 26(ABC): Following the verdict of the Supreme Court of Pakistan to instate PTI’s candidate Pervez Elahi as the chief minister of Punjab, the party’s senior vice chairman Shah Mahmood Qureshi said that “today, the Constitution’s rule has been accepted and the Pakistani people’s mandate has been respected”.
“On July 17, the people of Pakistan accepted Imran Khan’s narrative wholeheartedly and we reject this imported government,” the ex-foreign minister said in a press conference.
A three-member bench of the Supreme Court today declared Deputy Speaker Dost Muhammad Mazari’s ruling in the Punjab Chief Minister election “illegal” and ruled that Pervez Elahi will be the new CM of the province.
The Supreme Court’s short order declared Pervez Elahi as the duly elected chief minister of Punjab as it ruled that he had obtained 186 votes compared to Hamza’s 179.
The order also declared that the oath of office administered to Hamza was “without lawful authority and of no legal effect”.
Berating the deputy speaker’s ruling, Qureshi said Mazari “trampled the Constitution and did not follow the principles”, adding that he did not care about the law.
He said that the judiciary tolerated the criticism with patience and fulfilled its responsibility. “The coalition government tried to employ delaying tactics to intimidate the judiciary.”
Qureshi said that the decision has proved that Pakistan’s judiciary is independent.
Former minister for planning and development Asad Umar said that Pakistan’s politics has taken a new direction.
“There was a foreign conspiracy, however, Imran Khan did not bow before anyone or tolerate anyone’s dictation,” he said.
PTI’s Senator Faisal Javed termed the decision as Imran Khan’s victory and said that the decision was according to the law and Constitution, adding that the party wants the general elections to be announced immediately.
