Zardari dual office case: LHC rejects govt’s request to be made party

The Lahore High Court (LHC) on Friday resumed the hearing in the contempt of court petition against President Asif Ali Zardari for not relinquishing the political office of PPP co-chairman.
A larger bench of the LHC headed by Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial was hearing the case.
During the hearing, senior lawyer Wasim Sajjad, representing the federation, said that there was no example pertaining to judicial action against a head of state.
He further said that the bench should first decide on whether the petition was maintainable or not.
Sajjad said the president was part of the federation and that he (Sajjad) was representing him before the bench.
Rejecting the government’s request to be made a formal party in the case, the bench adjourned the hearing to Sept 21.
Earlier on Sept 5, the bench had issued a fresh notice to President Zardari through his principal secretary and sought a reply to the petition pleading contempt proceedings against him for not abiding a court order to relinquish his political office.
The petition that had been filed by Munir Ahmad through lawyers A.K Dogar and Azhar Siddique had accused President Zardari of indulging in political activities in the presidency. It had stated that the president had neither disassociated himself from the political office nor had he stopped ‘misusing’ the President House despite a verdict by the Lahore High Court’s full bench against the dual-office.
The petitioner had also contended that the use of Presidency for political activities was illegal and tantamount to committing contempt of the court’s orders issued on May 12 last year. He had also requested the court to issue a show-cause notice to the president and punish him under Contempt of Court Ordinance, 2003, read with Article 204 of the Constitution.