Pak court rescinds 10-year disqualification for convicts

Islamabad: A high court in Pakistan on Thursday restored 10-year disqualification for a convict under the anti-corruption laws by rescinding its earlier ruling to reduce it to five years, ending confusion over the length of disqualification following changes made in the election laws for public office holders.

The decision is likely to have an impact on various cases filed by politicians, including two former prime ministers, Imran Khan and Nawaz Sharif, ahead of the February 8 general elections.

The National Accountability Ordinance (NAO) of 1999 provided 10-year disqualification for a person convicted of corruption but a single bench of the Islamabad High Court (IHC) reduced it to five years while hearing a case following the amendments made in the election laws in April last year.

The changes made by the previous government headed by Shehbaz Sharif, the younger brother of Nawaz Sharif, mandated a maximum five-year period of disqualification, apparently providing relief to every convict.

The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) on July 25 last year challenged the IHC single-bench order limiting the disqualification to five from 10 years as provided in the NAO.

An IHC division bench comprising Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kayani and Justice Saman Rafat Imtiaz, hearing the NAB appeal, rejected the single bench verdict and ordered to restore section 15 (disqualification to contest elections or to hold public office) of the NAO, which specifies a 10-year disqualification for convicts from “seeking or from being elected, chosen, appointed or nominated” as public office holders.

The restoration of original disqualification can possibly hit former premier Imran Khan who is facing cases of corruption.

The ruling of the IHC comes when the Supreme Court is hearing a key case to determine the duration of disqualification under the Constitution's Article 62 (1)(f), which was used to disqualify former premier Nawaz Sharif in 2017.

Nawaz Sharif, who is projected as the prime ministerial candidate of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) party, returned to Pakistan from London in October, ending his four-year self-exile. The 73-year-old, is contesting the February 8 general elections in Pakistan.