And what follows
The remarks by two federal ministers about an Election Tribunal judge after he had unseated Sardar Ayaz Sadiq were highly inappropriate. While a fair criticism of a court judgment may not be out of order, finding motives behind a judgment is altogether uncalled for. If the government had any valid reasons to doubt the integrity of the judge it should have raised the issue at the time of his appointment as ET.
With another ET disqualifying Siddiq Baloch, who joined the PML-N after winning NA-154 as an independent candidate, Imran Khan can claim to have achieved a hat trick. It is ironic, however, that there is no end to the PTI chief’s complaints even when decisions are coming in his favour. One expects Khan to take up the issue of the four members of the EC through the parliamentary and legal channels available to him. He has already decided to contact other parties in this respect. He has also sent a petition against the members of the commission to the Supreme Judicial Council. It is time he bids farewell to politics of agitation which can derail the system.
The final decision regarding the fate of the disqualified MNAs has yet to be taken by the Supreme Court. There is a likelihood of Siddiq Baloch also approaching the apex court like Khwaja Saad Rafiq and Sardar Ayaz Sadiq. While the detailed judgment in NA-154 is yet to come, the other two candidates were disqualified on account of large scale election malpractices for which the EC and not the candidates are being held responsible.
By the time the final decision comes each one of the challengers would have spent millions. This is a reflection on the electoral system, which makes a lower or middle class candidate belonging to a smaller party practically helpless in securing justice in case he is made to lose the elections wrongfully. There is a need to make the adjudication of appeals less costly and in a shorter period through necessary electoral reforms.
