ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court determined that Dost Muhammad Mazari’s decision on the election of the chief minister of Punjab was invalid and that Pervaiz Elahi would take over as the new leader of the province.
The decision on the Punjab CM election issue was made by a three-member panel consisting of Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Umar Ata Bandial and Justices Ijazul Ahsan and Munib Akhtar.
The Punjab Governor Balighur Rehman was mandated by the supreme court to swear Elahi in by 11:30 p.m. The SC also annulled all of Hamza Shahbaz’s appointments as “trustee CM.”
The court said that President Dr. Arif Alvi can administer the oath to Elahi in the event that the Punjab governor chooses not to.
The court also ordered Hamza Shehbaz to leave the Chief Minister’s Office immediately and ordered the Punjab chief secretary to issue Pervaiz Elahi’s CM notification today.
Pervaiz Elahi, who received 186 votes compared to Hamza’s 179, had appealed the decision to the SC after deputy speaker Mazari disqualified 10 PML-Q votes for defying the party chief’s order.
PTI hails SC verdict
Shah Mehmood Qureshi, a former foreign minister, applauded the Supreme Court’s (SC) decision to appoint PTI nominee Pervaiz Elahi as Punjab chief minister (CM), stating that the people’s will has been honoured.
Speaking to reporters in front of the Supreme Court, the former federal minister claimed that the Constitution’s authority had been upheld and the will of the Pakistani people had been honoured.
Shah Mehmood Qureshi continued, “On July 17, the people of Pakistan rejected the imported administration and accepted Imran Khan’s story entirely.
Qureshi said that Dost Muhammad Mazari, the deputy speaker of the Punjab Assembly, violated the Pakistani Constitution and failed to act according to the rules during the election for chief minister of Punjab.
JUDICIAL COUP.
— Maryam Nawaz Sharif (@MaryamNSharif) July 26, 2022
