ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Thursday allowed hearing of a petition pertaining to the appointment of Senate Chairman Sadiq Sanjrani as acting president in absence of President Mamnoon Hussain, who departed to perform Umrah on May 15.
The petitioner, Advocate Afzal Khan Shinwari, pleaded that according to Article 49 of the constitution, the Senate chairman becomes acting president in the absence of the head of state, however, Article 41 states that the individual needs to be more than 45 years of age.
“Sanjrani, born in 1978, is 40 years old, therefore, he is not qualified to hold the office of the president even in the acting capacity,” the petition argues.
The court summoned Attorney General Syed Ashtar Ausaf Ali and sent notices to the respondents.
Shinwari, in his petition, argues that the Senate secretariat committed “a grave error and an illegality,” in their appointment of Sanjrani as Senate chairman keeping in mind the Articles of the constitution.
Shinwari alleges that the office of the president has been “illegally usurped”, and demands that the May 14 notification issued by the Senate secretariat be termed “unconstitutional, illegal and unlawful as well as null and void.”
On the other hand, acting president Sadiq Sanjrani on Thursday approved the appointment of Rai Azhar Hussain as assistant attorney general (AAG) of Islamabad and Muhammad Anwar Dar as AAG of Rawalpindi, replacing Raja Tanvir Akhtar.
Acting on the recommendations of the prime minister, he also approved the appointment of Alia Latif as the judge of Accountability Court-II, a statement from the president house said.
The acting president made these appointments after approving a summary sent by the prime minister containing the recommendations on the matter.