HYDERABAD: The Hyderabad circuit bench of the Sindh High Court on Thursday suspended till July 21 operation of the notification issued by Pakistan Medical Association (centre) on June 10, declaring “unopposed winners” of its Sindh chapter.

The division bench comprising Justices Zafar Ahmed Rajput and Amjad Ali Sahito passed the order on a petition filed by Dr Mohammad Khan Shar, Dr Pir Manzoor and four others and also issued notices to additional advocate general of Sindh and respondents, directing them to appear in court on July 21.

The petitioners, represented by Hashim Leghari advocate, cited as respondents president and secretary of PMA central body Dr Mirza Ali Azhar, Dr Rafiqul Hassan Khokhar and five other office bearers.

They said the petitioners had started election campaign after PMA (centre) appointed its representative Dr Mohammad Zafar Jatoi who issued election schedule and fixed polls date as Feb 29.

But suddenly on Feb 19 president PMA centre Dr Ikram Ahmed Tunio took a unilateral decision to conduct elections on his own without postponing the earlier polls schedule or citing any reason for new election, they said.

They said that on May 21 he issued a new letter, informing candidates that scrutiny of papers would be held on May 27 at PMA House Hyderabad. When the petitioners along with other candidates went there, neither any scrutiny was conducted nor elections were held and as they learnt later it was nothing but a sham exercise to ‘elect’ favourite candidates by trampling upon democratic norms, they said.

They said that candidates were not informed if their papers were rejected or accepted and if the papers were accepted then how the present body was elected unopposed?

They said that on June 3 the petitioners sent a letter of protest to PMA centre citing irregularities in electoral process but despite that the PMA centre through a notification issued on June 10 declared the candidates as having been elected unopposed.

They included Dr Mirza Ali Azhar (president), Dr Mohammad Usman Mako (president elect), Dr Vasdev (vice president-1), Dr Bashir Ahmed Khaskheli (vice president-2), Dr Rafiqul Hassan Khokhar (general secretary), Dr Nisar Ahmed Memon (finance secretary), Dr Mohammad Aslam Narejo (joint secretary) and Dr Mohammad Iqbal (joint secretary).

They said that as per constitution of PMA, the association’s central body was not authorised to interfere in election process of a provincial chapter.

On the other hand, they followed the set rules and procedures under which a meeting of PMA Sindh chapter was held on June 16, which decided that elections would be held and one member each from all divisions would be made member of the election committee to ensure free and transparent polls.

They said that a letter was sent to PMA on June 20, 2019 requesting the PMA central body to nominate its representative for supervising the election process.

In response to the letter, the PMA centre communicated two letters whereby it thanked its Sindh chapter for the request and nominated Dr Zafar Jatoi as its representative through a July 16, 2019, letter, they said.

They said that Dr Jatoi convened a meeting of Sindh chapter members on Feb 1 in Sukkur which decided election schedule fixing its date on Feb 29, 2020.

They said that they were “aggrieved persons” under Article 199 of Constitution and requested the court to declare June 10 notification issued by PMA central president and secretary general as illegal, unlawful and against the association’s constitution.

The court should direct the respondent PMA central body office-bearers to withdraw the notification and hold free, fair and impartial election of the Sindh chapter and in the meantime the court pass an interim order, suspending operation of the notification till final decision of the petition, said the petitioners.

Published in Dawn, July 11th, 2020