Islamabad: In a setback, Pakistan’s election commission has rejected the nomination papers of former prime minister and PML-N leader Shahid Khaqan Abbasi and Pakistan Tehreeke-Insaf chief Imran Khan for the NA-53 constituency of Islamabad. The nomination papers of Abbasi and his covering candidate Sardar Mehtab Khan for NA-53 were rejected by the returning officer after the candidates failed to fill the affidavit as per the requirements, says report. According to the returning officer, Abbasi had not submitted complete tax returns with his documents either. The candidates have vowed to challenge the decision in the election tribunal.
Khan’s nomination papers for the same constituency were rejected on account of being incomplete. His nomination papers were challenged earlier this month by Pakistan Justice and Democratic Party candidate Abdul Wahab Baloch, who contended that Khan did not fulfil the criterion under articles 62 and 63 on the issue of Sita White and her daughter Tyrian.
Although the returning officer rejected Baloch's objections against Khan's candidature, he turned down the PTI chief's papers saying he had submitted an incomplete affidavit as approved by the Supreme Court.
JuD fields Hafiz’s son-in-law & son
Meanwhile, Mumbai-terror attack mastermind Hafiz Saeed's son and his son-in-law are among 265 candidates fielded by the Jamaat-ud -Dawah for national and provincial assembly seats, with the banned group's political wing vowing to make the country a "citadel of Islam." Saeed, who also carries a $10 million American bounty on his head for his role in terror activities, is not contesting the election.
The JuD, a front for the Lashkar-e-Taiba terror group that carried out the deadly 2008 Mumbai attack, launched its political front Milli Muslim League (MML). Pakistan's election commission denied registration of the MML as a political party following objections from the Interior Ministry which argued that the entity was an offshoot of the JuD, led by Saeed, banned by a UN resolution.
With general elections approaching, the group decided to contest on the platform of a little known "dormant" political entity, Allaha-u-Akbar Tehreek (AAT), registered with the ECP. The nomination papers of all the MML backed candidates have been accepted by the Returning Officers during the scrutiny process, the MML said.
"The nomination papers of 265 candidates - 80 on National Assembly (NA) and 185 on provincial assembly seats - including that of Hafiz Saeed's son Hafiz Talha Saeed and son-in-law Hafiz Khalid Waleed have been accepted by the Returning Officers," an MML official said.
