ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf candidate for the National Assembly seat NA-63 Jhelum approached the Supreme Court on Saturday to seek early holding of by-election in the constituency.

Senior advocate Dr Khalid Ranjha filed the petition on behalf of Chaudhry Fawad Hussain, who is also an anchorperson and lawyer, to challenge the June 16 notification issued by Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Sardar Raza Khan through which the by-election scheduled for July 14 was postponed for an indefinite period because of expiry of the tenure of the four members of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP).

Political observers describe the Jhelum by-election as a crucial event since it has always been considered a traditional constituency of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz.

The seat fell vacant on Sept 23 due to the death of Malik Iqbal Mehdi Khan. Now his son, Raja Matloob Mehdi, has been fielded by the PML-N.

The federal government through the law secretary, the CEC and Matloob Mehdi and other candidates participating in the by-election have been named as respondents in the petition.

It contends that the postponement of by-elections in five constituencies, including NA-63, is in gross violation of the Constitution.

After submission of his nomination papers, the PTI candidate commenced his election campaign with full force with the help of his supporters and sympathisers, the petition says. The campaign was in full swing and his contest with the PML-N candidate had become talk of the town when the CEC issued the notification postponing the by-election — an act which is “illegal and inadmissible under the law and cannot be endorsed for being in violation and contradiction of the mandatory provisions of the constitution, the Representation of People Act 1976 and the spirit of democracy”.

The notification also amounts to infringement of larger public interest and negation of the imperial rights preserved in the Constitution, the petition argues and seeks an immediate, urgent and effective indulgence of the Supreme Court to save precious and prime rights of people.

It says that being the sole custodian and protector of the democratic system, norms and conventions and the Constitution, the court is committed to protecting public interest and fundamental rights to save them from derogation, negation, infringement and violation from any quarter, authority or the state organ.

The voters of the constituency, the petition says, have a fundamental right to be represented in parliament by an elected representative who can only be chosen through just, honest, free and fair elections.

It says that it has been a settled law that a constituency cannot remain unrepresented for an indefinite period and that the state is duty-bound to protect the voters’ right to be represented, by using all means available and on its disposal.

Thus the postponement of the by-election by the CEC is arbitrary and unwarranted and has the potential of causing political havoc by setting at naught the integrity and independence of the electoral process that is so important and indispensable to the democratic system, the petition argues.

The federal government under Article 218 of the Constitution is also duty-bound to organise and conduct free and fair elections, it says. Simi­lar­ly under Article 224(4) of the Cons­titution, election on a vacant seat has to be held within 60 days from the occurrence of the vacancy. Therefore the postponement of the by-election for an indefinite period is a violation of the mandatory provisions of the Cons­titution and against the letter and spirit of the law, the petition argues.

Published in Dawn, June 19th, 2016