LHC overrules objection on PTI lawmakers’ plea against NA speaker

• Justice Karim rejected this objection.
• Speaker did not invite lawmakers to verify resignations
• Petitioners requested the speaker not to de-notify them

LAHORE: Justice Shahid Karim of the Lahore High Court (LHC) on Friday overruled an objection by the registrar office on a petition of 43 former lawmakers belonging to the PTI against the NA speaker`s decision to accept their resignations.

The office objected to the petition stating that a challenge was not maintainable against the NA speaker because this being a matter of internal proceedings.

However, Justice Karim rejected this objection and decided that the case shall be heard on merits on a date to be fixed by the office in the next week.

The lawmakers, including Riaz Fatyana, filed the petition through Senator Barrister Syed Ali Zafar.

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The petition said the petitioners requested the speaker not to de-notify them as they had withdrawn resignations. Still, the speaker went ahead and accepted their resignations `without following the due process` The petition contended that `en masse` resignations cannot be treated as resignations as they were not voluntary but based on political considerations to force early elections.

This aspect was never denied by the speaker and all petitioners were asked to return to parliament, the petition before the LHC said.

But when the petitioners opted to return to the assembly and withdraw their resignations, the speaker `unlawfully` accepted their resignations on political grounds.

The petitioner alleged that the speaker and the ECP never followed the law, but instead acted on dictation from high-ups.

The speaker did not personally invite the lawmakers to verify their resignations before accepting them, the petition added.