The Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) on Thursday challenged the Local Government Amendment Bill 2013 in the Sindh High Court.
The MQM’s mayor-nominee Waseem Akhtar and other party leaders submitted a petition in the Sindh High Court (SHC) in which they said that the amendment in Local Government Bill after announcement of election schedule was illegal.
The Sindh Assembly on Jan 19 had passed the Bill with majority under which election for special seats, mayor and deputy mayor would be held through show of hand instead of secret ballot. The opposition benches had strongly opposed the Bill. Through the petition, the MQM requested the court to declare the amendments null and void, adding that instead of transferring power to the elected local government representatives the provincial government was threatening them.
It submitted in the application that the amendment was violation of Article 26 of the Constitution which allowed secret balloting. The petitioner appealed the court to declare the amendment null and void.
MQM’s mayor-nominee Waseem Akhtar, Opposition Leader in Sindh Assembly Khawaja Izharul Hassan and Syed Sardar Ahmad were present in the court.