LAHORE: Seventeen Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) MPAs on Thursday filed an intra-court appeal against the Lahore High Court’s (LHC) decision ordering the Punjab governor to administer oath to Chief Minister-elect Hamza Shehbaz by April 28 (today).
In the appeal submitted today, the PTI lawmakers named Hamza, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif through his principle secretary, Secretary to President Alvi, and Senate Chairman Sadiq Sanjrani as respondents.
They contended that the high court, in its order, ignored the chaos that occurred in the assembly on April 16 and proceeded to conduct judicial proceedings “with utterance comprising rude remarks against the constitutional officers such as the Governor of Punjab and the President of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan”.
“The haste and the procedure manifest an absence of justice, particularly, in a matter which must be heard by a larger bench comprising not less than 7 judges of this honourable court, hence, this instant appeal,” the appeal stated.
The petition argues that the president could act in his discretion in respect to any matter that has been empowered to him by the Constitution.
The MPAs contended that Article 133 of the Constitution also said that “the Governor may ask the Chief Minister to continue to hold office until his successor enters upon the office of the Chief Minister”.
Subsequently, the PTI MPAs demanded that the order passed by LHC be “set aside being illegal, unlawful, whimsical as well as beyond the facts of the case and a clear violation of Articles 48, 133, 248 and 255 of the Constitution in the interest of justice, equity and fairplay”.
A day earlier, LHC Chief Justice Ameer Bhatti had ruled that Hamza’s oath was being delayed on “one pretext or the other” and had directed Punjab Governor Omar Sarfaraz Cheema to ensure the completion of the process of administration of oath of Chief Minister Punjab, “either himself or through his nominee on or before April 28”.
The written order passed on the petition of Hamza stated: “All provisions of the Constitution of Islamic Republic of Pakistan, 1973, suggest prompt formation of federal government and provincial government.
“For that matter, expeditious administration of oath either by President or by Governor or their nominee, as the case may be, is mandatory; as all expected reasons/options causing delay are excluded/procured by suggesting/providing alternate mechanism and I do not find any vacuum or space in the Constitution for causing any delay in administration of oath required under Constitution.”
