The election tribunal overturned on Saturday the election of Pakistan People’s Party Parliamentarian (PPPP) candidate to a national assembly constituency – NA-215 (Khairpur) and declared former Sindh chief minister and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader Syed Ghous Ali Shah as winner.
Former SHC judge Zafar Ahmed Khan Sherwani, who headed the tribunal, announced the ruling on an election petition that challenged the election results of NA-215 won by PPP candidate. Ghous had challenged election results of PS-29 and NA-215 constituencies won by Sindh Chief Minister Syed Qaim Ali Shah and Nawab Ali Wassan respectively.
The PML-N defeated candidate had alleged massive rigging in the polling for both the constituencies and sought verification of the thumb impressions on the ballots. He claimed that several irregularities were committed by the returned candidates in the polls.
However, the PPP candidates had refuted the allegations of irregularities and massive rigging in the election before the tribunal.
The tribunal in its judgment said that there were tangible evidences that led to irresistible conclusion that the returned candidate had committed corrupt practices within contemplations of Section 78 of Representation of Peoples Act 1976 because he himself was seen firing at the polling station Kot Pull to deter the voters of the petitioner from exercising their right of vote, whereas Munawar Wassan, his close relative, with his unidentified accomplices abducted, maltreated and illegally confined the voters to refrain them from voting.”
It further said that on the basis of concrete evidence there was also no doubt that the returned candidate was an influential person being a relative of Manzoor Hussain Wassan, former home minister before caretaker setup in the province when Qaim Ali Shah was chief minister and was also one of the contenting candidates from PS-29 (Khairpur).
The tribunal ruled that the election of the returned candidate was declared void under Section 68(d) of the Act and the petitioner being the runner up was declared as elected under Section 69 of the Act.