LAHORE: The Lahore High Court (LHC) on Wednesday disqualified the Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q) former MNA Khadim Hussain Wattoo and former Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) MPA Farooq Yousaf Ghurki from contesting elections for having bogus degree.
Justice Khalid Mahmood Khan issued the orders in the separate cases.In the case of Khadim Hussain Wattoo, the judge issued the order on a petition filed by Zahid Hussain, a citizen, who contended that the former MNA cheated the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) by submitting bogus degrees and adopting malpractices in elections from 1985 to 2008 as he contested all elections.
He said in the 2008 elections, Wattoo won elections from NA-188 Bahawalnagar on the basis of a fake BA degree.In the case of Farooq Yousaf Ghurki, the LHC judge Khalid Mahmood Khan issued the order on a petition of Iftikhar Ahmed, a voter from the constituency.
The petitioner submitted that Ghurki was elected MPA in the 2008 elections from PP-159 Lahore on a bogus BA degree. Ahmed said Ghurki should be disqualified as MPA as he cheated the Election Commission. He alleged that Ghurki appeared in the 1990 matriculation examination and his BA degree was issued from the Punjab University in 1992. He said after the matriculation exam, two years are needed to sit in the FA examination and then two years to sit in the BA examination. This, he said, indicated that Ghurki had a bogus BA degree.
