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Updated May 19th, 2022 at 08:11 IST

Pakistan: PTI leader Chaudhry to knock SC's doors for removal of Punjab CM Hamza Shahbaz

Fawad Chaudhary on Wednesday announced that his party Pakistan Tehreek-e Insaf (PTI) will appeal to the Supreme Court to remove Punjab CM Hamza Shehbaz.

Reported by: Megha Rawat
Pakistan
Image: ANI/Facebook @hamzashehbaz | Image:self
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Former Pakistan Information & Broadcasting and PTI leader Fawad Chaudhry announced that the party will appeal to the Supreme Court of Pakistan to have Punjab Chief Minister Hamza Shahbaz removed following the SC's verdict regarding the Article 63 (A). This comes after the country's Supreme Court ruled yesterday that the vote of any lawmaker that is cast against the party line will not be counted.

While addressing the conference in Pakistan's Lahore, Fawad Chaudhry stated, “We are going to file a petition tomorrow as Hamza Shahbaz is illegally holding the chief minister’s position. We will seek implementation of the Supreme Court verdict and fresh elections in Punjab.”

Fawad Chaudhry went on to say that the Supreme Court ruling on the interpretation of the Article 63 (A) ended the disloyalty culture and 25 votes on Hamza Shahbaz's side has been also reduced. ARY News quoted Chaudhry as saying, “The PTI lawmakers will now have 173 numbers while Hamza Shahbaz has 172 votes. Hamza Shahbaz should make a decision by himself now.”

Erroneous votes will not be counted in legislature: Pakistan SC

The PTI leader chastised Hamza Shahbaz for continuing to hold the position of the chief minister, despite his own party's regulations requiring him to obey legal rulings. He further stated that Hamza's orders during his chief ministerial tenure are unconstitutional.

The former Pakistan I&B minister also stated that the Punjab Assembly Speaker could have issued a notification for Hamza’s removal, however, PTI preferred to seek a court order. 

He further asserted that President Arif Alvi could have requested the vote of confidence from Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif at any time. According to a report by ARY News, Chaudhry underlined that new elections should be held throughout the country, but only in Punjab, and that a general election should be held in September.

Meanwhile, the Supreme Court issued its decision on the presidential referral on the interpretation of Article 63 (A) on Tuesday, stating that erroneous votes will not be counted in the legislature.

According to ARY News, the case's proceedings were completed by a five-member bench led by Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial and consisting of Justice Ijazul Ahsan, Justice Mazhar Alam Khan Miankhel, Justice Munib Akhtar, and Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail.

The decision raised serious questions about the Punjab government and CM Humza Shahbaz’s legitimacy, as he was elected with the help of PTI defectors. 

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Published May 19th, 2022 at 08:11 IST

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