ORDER  SHEET

IN THE HIGH COURT OF SINDH, KARACHI

Election Appeal No.55 of 2018

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Date                         Order with signature of Judge

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1.      For order on CMA No.5738/2018

2.      For order on CMA No.5739/2018

3.      For hearing of main case

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22.06.2018

Syed Mureed Ali Shah, advocate for appellant.

 

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1)        Urgent Application is granted.

2]         Exemption granted subject to all just exceptions.

3)        Learned counsel for the appellant contends that the nomination paper was rejected on the ground that her name was mentioned in nomination paper as Rukhsana Parveen whereas her name is mentioned in the letter dated June 10, 2018/list of candidates issued by the General Secretariat, Pakistan Peoples Party Parliamentarians (PPPP) at Sr.No.23 as Rukhsana Shah. Learned counsel for the appellant further submits that the party (PPPP) has issued another letter dated June 20, 2018 (with reference to letter dated June 10, 2018) available at page-35 with MoP for correcting the name of the appellant as Rukhsana Parveen W/o Syed Abdullah Shah (instead of Rukhsana Shah) and CNIC # 4140957155272.

                       

Learned counsel for the appellant has drawn my attention to Section 62(9)(b)(ii) of the Elections Act, 2017 and submits that the Returning Officer shall not reject nomination on the ground of an error in regard to the name of the candidate. For the sake of convenience, relevant law is being reproduced hereunder:-

62(9)(b)(ii).            the Returning Officer shall not reject a nomination paper on the ground of any defect which is not of a substantial nature and may allow any such defect to be remedied forthwith, including an error in regard to the name, serial number in the electoral roll or other particulars of the candidate or his proposer or seconder so as to bring them in conformity with the corresponding entries in the electoral roll”.

     

Learned counsel has further referred to Identity Card of appellant as MPA issued by the Provincial Assembly of Sindh available at page-13 with the memo of petition whereon name of the appellant is appearing as Rukhsana Parveen alias Rukhsana Shah for reserved seat for women for two elections i.e. 2008 to 2013 and 2013 to 2018.

 

To support his contention learned counsel for the appellant has relied upon the case of Sheikh Muhammad Akram versus Abdul Ghafoor and 19 others reported in 2016 SCMR 733 wherein it has been held that when discrepancies/errors in particulars of the seconder were not substantial in nature and correction of such errors was specifically permitted under the law, such discrepancies could not have been made a ground for unseating the returned candidate in elections. Issue notice to the respondents for the next date of hearing.

 

To come up on 25.06.2018 at 11:30 A.M.

 

JUDGE