ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court of Pakistan on Monday ended the lifetime disqualification of lawmakers, recalling its earlier order of disbarring politicians from running for office ever.
A seven-member larger bench of the apex court, headed by the Chief Justice of Pakistan, Qazi Faez Isa, and comprising Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah, Justice Yahya Afridi, Justice Aminuddin Khan, Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail, Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar, and Justice Musarrat Hilali, heard the case, which was broadcast live on the Supreme Court’s website.
Earlier on Friday, the Supreme Court reserved its verdict on a set of petitions seeking to determine whether the disqualification period for a lawmaker was for five years or a lifetime. The proceedings were broadcast live on the apex court’s website.
The bench announced the verdict with a 6-1 majority as Justice Yahya Afridi disagreed with his fellow judges, backing the Supreme Court’s previous judgment. In its verdict, the Supreme Court declared that no person can be barred for a lifetime from running in elections if they are disqualified under Article 62 (1)(f).
While announcing the verdict, CJP Qazi Faez Isa noted that since the general election schedule was issued, it was “necessary” to release the order at the earliest.
The legal conundrum arose after the parliament passed the amendments in the Elections Act 2017, restricting the disqualification period of a politician to five years, instead of a lifetime, contrary to the SC’s order, which deemed disqualification under Article 62(1)(f) as “permanent”.
The judgment allowed Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) supremo Mian Nawaz Sharif and Istehkam-e-Pakistan Party (IPP) chief Jahangir Khan Tareen to run for office as they were disqualified for life.
Supreme Court Ends Lifetime Disqualification for Lawmakers
In the written order, the SC noted that Article 62(1)(f) of the Constitution is not a self-executory provision as it does not by itself specify any period for disqualification.
“There is no law that provides for the procedure, process, and the identification of the court of law for making the declaration mentioned in Article 62(1)(f) of the Constitution and the duration of such a declaration, for the purpose of disqualification thereunder, to meet the requirements of the Fundamental Right to a fair trial and due process guaranteed by Article 10A of the Constitution.”
The interpretation of Article 62(1)(f) of the Constitution in imposing a lifetime disqualification upon a person through an implied declaration of a court of civil jurisdiction while adjudicating upon some civil rights and obligations of the parties is beyond the scope of the said Article and amounts to reading into the Constitution, the order noted.
Such reading into the Constitution, the order mentioned, is also against the principle of harmonious interpretation of the provisions of the Constitution as it abridges the fundamental right of citizens to contest elections and vote for a candidate of their choice enshrined in the Constitution, in the absence of reasonable restrictions imposed by law.
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