ATTOCK, July 7: Councillors of Attock-I Union Council on Saturday voted out their naib nazim Sheikh Mehmood Elahi, who is also the naib nazim of Attock Tehsil. During voting on a no-confidence motion, 10 members out of 13 belonging to the district nazim’s group voted in favour of the motion.

According to sources, Nazim Malik Tahir Awan, Khalida Azhar, Mehboob Sultan, Shaheen Begum, Jameel Ahmad, Mohammad Iqbal, Nazir Ahmad, Saleem Iqbal, William Masih and Shahab Rafique cast their vote in favour of the no-confidence motion moved by lady councillor Shaheen Begum and others on May 28.

Advocate Syed Azmat Bukhari, counsel for the petitioners Nazim Malik Tahir Awan and others, told Dawn that only three members - the naib nazim, his uncle Farman Elahi and Mrs Jaffery - did not participate in the voting process.

Before the voting, Sheikh Mehmood Elahi filed an application through his counsel Advocate Zaheer Qadri before the Returning Officer, Sheikh Rashid Ahmed, asking him to stop voting on no- confidence as the Attock Tehsil Council had adopted a resolution against the motion.

While the counsel for the petitioners opposed the plea and presented arguments in favour of the motion.

After hearing the arguments of both the parties the RO rejected the plea of the naib nazim and conducted the voting through secrete balloting, Mr Bukhari said.

The votes were counted soon after the polling by the RO, who sent the results to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) for issuance of a notification of disqualification for Naib Nazim Mehboob Elahi, who could also lose his seat of Attock Tehsil naib nazim, he added.

Earlier during the proceeding, the RO asked the journalists to leave the court as it was ‘in-camera’ proceedings. However, they (mediamen) would be informed about the proceedings later.

Meanwhile, UC members Khalida Azhar and Mehboob Sultana told local reporters outside the court that their opponents had harassed them not to vote for the adoption of the no-confidence motion, but they did not budge. They had also informed the RO in this regard.

It may be recalled that on May 28, nine councillors, including four women members of the UC Attock-I had submitted a no-confidence motion against Naib Nazim Mehmood Elahi during the UC session for his ‘misbehaviour and non-cooperative’ attitude with the members, besides using derogatory remakes and foul language, causing embarrassment to the lady members.

UC Nazim Malik Tahir Awan forwarded the resolution to the ECP, who appointed additional district and sessions judge Sheikh Rashid Ahmad as RO on June 6.

Meanwhile the District Nazim Tahir Sadiq Khan and some other local PML leaders tried to mediate between the two parties as both of them belong to his group but to no avail.