High Court disqualifies PoK PM Sardar Tanveer Ilyas for contempt of court
PoK Prime Minister Sardar Tanveer Ilyas
Pakistan Occupied Kashmir's (PoK) High Court bench on Tuesday disqualified Prime Minister Sardar Tanveer Ilyas from the legislative assembly for contempt of court.
After the court's verdict, Ilyas won't be holding the office of PoK's prime minister and a new premier will be elected by the legislative assembly.
The courts of PoK had on Monday served separate notices to Ilyas asking him to explain his position over his “derogatory remarks about the superior judiciary in his speeches at public meetings”.
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The notices, which were served through the PM's principal secretary, asked Ilyas to make separate appearances before the Supreme Court and the high court on Tuesday.
During a function held in Islamabad, Ilyas had indirectly held the judiciary responsible for affecting his government's functioning and interfering in the executive's domain through the grant of stay orders.
Ilyas had made a particular reference to a $15 million Saudi-funded education sector project, stating that it was in limbo because a stay order was issued on it by the court.
He also took strong exception to the “de-sealing by the courts of tobacco factories involved in tax evasion to the tune of billions of rupees”.
The high court's judgement was read out on Tuesday by Justice Chaudhry Khalid Rasheed, sentencing the PoK premier till the rising of the court.
After the announcement of the court's verdict, Ilyas - who was supposed to make an appearance before the Supreme Court – went to the Prime Minister’s House accompanied by the cabinet members.
Speaking on the court's verdict, PTI leader Fawad Chaudhry said that whether it was Pakistan's prime minister or that of PoK, respecting the court's decision was necessary.
“This country cannot be run by destroying the judicial system,” he stated, appealing to Ilyas to apologise and stating that he hoped the Supreme Court would give him relief.
He added that Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif should learn a lesson from the court's verdict.
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Court issues notice
Presenting the clip of the prime minister's speech in the court's order, the PoK court said that a discussion was held on the matter by the judges’ council “in view of its seriousness” and it was unanimously decided “it could not be overlooked because the dignity and authority of the courts was on stake and nobody could be allowed to undermine it”.
“However, […] before issuing contempt notice we are intended to ask the prime minister to appear in person and explain his position on the referred news,” the court stated. Identical observations were made by the high court.
“Prime Minister Tanveer Ilyas has directly threatened the superior judiciary and the language of his speech at a public meeting is highly derogatory, improper and indecently worded,” the order stated.
Not just the latest statement, but his “previous track record from several months is [also] objectionable, unbecoming and improper,” it further stated.
The order read that the high court judges’ council unanimously decided not to leave the matter unattended “simply by shutting [its] eye from contemptuous and derogatory statement of the person who is at the helm of affairs.”
“By showing magnanimity and judicial restraint, we have opted, in the beginning of the proceedings, to serve a notice on the prime minister to personally appear before the full court to explain his position,” it added.
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