HAMID NAWAZ

LAHORE: An election tribunal on Monday, after disqualifying Railway Minister Saad Rafiq and declaring the results of NA-125 null and void, ordered re-polling in this Lahore constituency.

The action came after the court allowed a petition by Pakistan Tehreek Insaf’s runner-up candidate, Hamid Khan, from the constituency.

Tribunal-member Javed Rasheed Mehboobi ordered the Election Commission of Pakistan to hold fresh election in NA-125 in 60 days. The tribunal, however, ruled that the petitioner had failed to prove his claims of vote rigging.

The tribunal also allowed a petition of Hafiz Farhat Abbas against Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz Member of the Punjab Assembly Mian Naseer, ordering re-polling in the Punjab Assembly’s constituency PP-155.

The tribunal also said mass irregularities were found in seven polling stations of NA-125 inspected by the National Database and Registration Authority.

The election staff’s inefficiency was blamed for unverified information and the tribunal said the Election Commission should make a rule to punish them.

In this case, the tribunal initially carried out an inspection of the constituency’s record through a local commission last year. The commission made up of a retired sessions judge in its inspection report had found out irregularities committed by the election staff. The tribunal then told the National Database and Registration Authority to carry out verification of thumb impressions. For this purpose, 10 polling stations out of a total of 265 were randomly selected by the tribunal. The polling stations where the authority found irregularities are 5, 6, 98, 107, 110, 111 and 120.

The railways minister announced that he would challenge the decision in the Supreme Court, arguing that re-polling was, in fact, against the returning and presiding officers.

Reuters adds: An election tribunal disqualified Railways Saad Rafiq minister and ally of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Monday for vote rigging in the 2013 election, a decision the opposition is likely to trumpet as vindication of its complaints. Protests last year over cheating in the election, which brought Pakistan’s first transition between civilian governments, were led by Imran Khan and raised fears about stability in the nuclear-armed country.

The tribunal disqualified Railways Minister Saad Rafiq from his seat in Lahore and called for a re-election within 60 days, setting the scene for a battle for votes between Sharif’s party and Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf. Rafiq denied irregularities, saying election organisers were responsible for any mistakes and he would challenge the ruling in the Supreme Court.

“The tribunal is punishing my party and my voters for the incompetence of the returning and presiding officers,” Rafiq told Reuters by telephone.

The judge overseeing the tribunal issued a one-page verdict disqualifying Rafiq and calling for a by-election. Television channels reported that the judge castigated election workers and said ballot bags had been opened with a sharp object and records had been tampered with.

Pakistan Muslim League-N which denied any rigging, won the 2013 election with a sizeable majority while Khan, whose party came third, alleged widespread fraud. He organised a sit-in protest in central Islamabad to demand a new election.

The rally turned deadly in September when demonstrators clashed with police near government buildings and embassies and three people were killed.

The decision to unseat a close ally of the prime minister comes at a difficult time for Pakistan, already plagued by an Islamist insurgency, sectarian tension and recurrent power shortages, with many people deeply unhappy with the government’s performance since it came to power.

Khan was not available for comment but his candidate who lost in the Lahore constituency in 2013 welcomed the ruling.

“It took us two years to get justice,” the candidate, Hamid Khan, told reporters outside the court.

“A victory for the people of Pakistan,” Khan’s party said in a posting on Twitter.