ISLAMABAD: In a bid to increase pressure on the government, the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) on Monday asked the Supreme Court to hold an early hearing of its petition seeking to disqualify Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, his son-in-law retired Capt Mohammad Safdar and Finance Minister Ishaq Dar for their alleged involvement in the Panamagate scandal.

In a two-page application filed before the apex court on behalf of party chairman Imran Khan, the PTI has asked the court to hear the case on any date next week.

The application was moved weeks ahead of the party’s planned Oct 30 siege of Islamabad, another attempt to exert pressure on the prime minister to either resign from office or clear his name from the scandal by presenting himself for accountability.

In addition to the court case and planned street agitation, the party is also fighting a case before the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) that seeks to disqualify Mr Sharif and his relatives for making investments using offshore companies.

“We are already late. This case has international implications, and because of strong evidence, should have been taken up by the court by now,” said senior PTI leader Ishaq Khakwani.

He said a month was wasted after the registrar office returned the petition, leaving them with no choice but to challenge the move before the chief justice.

The PTI’s main petition was originally returned by the SC registrar with the observation that the petition was frivolous. That decision was challenged before the SC on the grounds that deeming the petition frivolous was insulting, degrading and defamatory, and reflected a lack of experience and a complete absence of application of mind, let alone acting judiciously, fairly or reasonably in the discharge of functions delegated to the registrar office.

Chief Justice Anwar Zaheer Jamali, during an in-chamber hearing on Sept 27, accepted the appeal, set aside the objections raised by the registrar office and held that the office’s objections to the maintainability of the petitions were ill-founded.

The PTI’s petition was cleared for hearing, and similar petitions filed by the Jamaat-i-Islami (JI) and Advocate Tariq Asad and Zafarullah Khan of the Watan Party were also accepted for hearing. They will now be taken up jointly by a three-judge bench.

A panel of lawyers — Hamid Khan, Naeem Bokhari and Ahmed Awais — will present the PTI’s case before the SC whenever it is heard.

In Monday’s application, the PTI contended that all Pakistani citizens were interested in the SC’s decision in the case and looking forward to its early disposal.

“There are questions in respect of leaders of national importance belonging to different political parties of Pakistan and the prime minister is also from one of those persons against whom there are allegations,” the application stated.

“From this point of view, the constitution petition needs very early hearing,” the application said, adding that the earlier the case was decided, the better it would be for the country and for Pakistani citizens, as well as for the interest of justice.

If the hearing is not fixed during the week commencing on Oct 17, the JI also plans to move a similar application next Monday, Advocate Asad Manzoor Butt told Dawn.

Published in Dawn October 11th, 2016