Disqualified Musharraf still holds APML presidentship

ISLAMABAD: Gen (R) Pervez Musharraf is continuously heading his miniature All Pakistan Muslim League (APML) despite being disqualified to contest any election unlike deposed prime minister Nawaz Sharif who was ousted as the PML-N president by the Supreme Court for facing the same legal disability.

Musharraf’s name appears on the website of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) as the APML president.

Last month, a bench headed by Chief Justice Mian Saqib Nisar divested Nawaz Sharif of the party presidency on account of his disqualification by the apex court on July 28 last for not declaring in his nomination papers the receivable salary from his son’s foreign company. The ex-premier had retaken the PML-N stewardship through the recently enacted Elections Act, 2017 after his judicial ineligibility. By applying the same yardstick – the top court’s instant decision -, Musharraf is disallowed to hold the APML’s presidency. Rather his disqualification was on multiple grave charges, much more serious than those of Nawaz Sharif. Way back in 2013 on the eve of the general elections, Musharraf was declared disqualified for life to contest polls. A court ousted him on charges of abusing his authority as the army chief, violating his oath of office as the president of Pakistan and putting the judges under house arrest. The judgment continues to hold the field.

At the time, Musharraf’s nomination papers for four National Assembly seats – NA-250 (Karachi), NA-139 (Kasur), NA-48 (Islamabad), and NA-32 (Chitral) – had been rejected on the same grounds.

A high court election tribunal had declared him as not being honest and righteous and ineligible to contest the elections under articles 62 and 63 of the Constitution. While the former dictator faces the incapacitation imposed by the previous and recent court rulings, he has announced to come back before the forthcoming general elections to not only himself contest but also field candidates from the platform of a phoney coalition – Pakistan Awami Ittehad (PAI) - of 23 miniscular political parties.

It was a mere coincidence that shortly after his statement, a special court that has been trying him on high treason charges since long issued a strict order to appear before it. His lawyer committed that Musharraf would return to Pakistan soon to face the charges.

Moments after the Supreme Court judgment, Nawaz Sharif had to vacate the party office. Not only that, all the PML-N candidates who had been issued tickets for the Senate elections were declared by the ECP independents as the sponsorships accorded to them by him became void.

The court order had stated that all steps and decisions taken by Nawaz Sharif since his July 28 disqualification are declared null and void. It said after being disqualified under Article 62(1)(f), he is barred from holding the office of the party head or PML-N’s president. As a consequence, it is declared that “any person” who suffers from lack of qualification under Article 62 or disqualification under Article 63 is debarred from holding the position of ‘party head’ by whatever name called and prohibited from exercising any of the powers provided in Article 63-A, as party head or any other power in this capacity under any law, rule, regulation, statute, instrument or document of any political party.

Although this was Nawaz Sharif-specific judgment, the use of word “any person” disqualified under Article 62 has universal application and covers everyone including, of course, Musharraf who was declared ineligible under this provision. This question may be raised to get him out of the electoral field if he filed candidacy papers for the upcoming parliamentary polls that he is keen to contest.