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Published 30 Nov, 2017 01:56pm

PTI asks ECP for clarity on delay in Begum Kulsoom's oath-taking in NA

The Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) on Thursday asked the chief election commissioner (CEC) to clarify the Election Commission of Pakistan's (ECP) position on Begum Kulsoom Nawaz's delay in taking oath in the National Assembly following her NA-120 by-poll victory nearly three months ago.

Begum Kulsoom Nawaz contested the NA-120 by-poll in September after her husband, Nawaz Sharif, was disqualified from the seat by the Supreme Court in a landmark ruling on the Panama Papers case.

The ousted prime minister's wife left the country to be treated for throat cancer in London the day her nomination papers were submitted to the ECP, and her daughter, Maryam, campaigned for the by-poll on her behalf. Additionally, in Begum Kulsoom's absence, Maryam is often seen visiting the PML-N office in NA-120.

PTI's Fawad Chaudhry, in a letter to the CEC, asked the electoral watchdog to clarify what the law says regarding someone who has won an election but failed to attend any subsequent sessions of the National Assembly.

Chaudhry also asked the CEC to elaborate on the legal action that can be taken against a candidate who has not been sworn into parliament despite winning an election nearly three months ago.

"Can the candidate be denotified and can the ECP hold fresh elections on their vacated seat?" Chaudhry asked in the letter.

Chaudhry also asked if there is an ECP procedure that ensures only healthy candidates contest elections in the country.

Concluding his letter, Chaudhry said that the ECP needs to answer these questions so that the legalities regarding these matters are known to the whole country.

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