(UTV | PAKISTAN) – Chaudhry Parvez Elahi took oath as the chief minister of Pakistan’s Punjab on Wednesday, hours after the Supreme Court dealt a big blow to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif-led coalition by striking down the deputy speaker’s ruling and named the PML-Q leader as the new executive head of the country’s most crucial political province.
In the widely anticipated judgement on a petition filed by Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q) leader Elahi, the apex court on Tuesday declared Deputy Speaker Dost Muhammad Mazari’s controversial decision to reject 10 votes in the Punjab chief minister’s election as “illegal”.
The three-member bench, comprising Chief Justice of Pakistan Umar Ata Bandial, Justice Ijazul Ahsan, and Justice Muneeb Akhtar, ruled that Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) backed candidate Elahi will be the new chief minister of Punjab, paving the way for a change in the country’s most populous province and political heartland.
The apex court’s verdict delivered a big blow to the Sharif-led coalition government as it saw Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Hamza Shehbaz, son of the prime minister, lost his status of the “trustee” chief minister.
The three-member bench ordered Punjab Governor Baligh ur Rehman to administer the oath to Elahi. However, Rehman refused to perform his duties.
Following Governor Rehman’s refusal, Elahi left for Islamabad late Tuesday night to take oath from President of Pakistan Arif Alvi as per the Supreme Court’s order.
Alvi administered the oath to Elahi, 76, at the Aiwan-e-Sadar early Wednesday morning. President Alvi had sent a special aircraft to bring Elahi to Islamabad for the oath-taking ceremony.
Elahi, who lost the election held on Friday despite getting a majority vote, challenged the ruling of deputy speaker Mazari who handed victory to Hamza. Elahi was supported by ousted Prime Minister Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party.
Elahi secured 186 votes against 179 votes of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) candidate Hamza but lost after Deputy Speaker Mazari rejected 10 votes of his Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q) lawmakers.
Mazari refused to count the vote after PML-Q chief Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain through a letter directed his party lawmakers to vote for Hamza, son of Prime Minister Sharif and PML-N president.
The Supreme Court, in an 11-page short order, said: “We find that the understanding and implementation of the said short judgment as well as the provisions of Article 63A(1)(b) of the Constitution by the Deputy Speaker, Provincial Assembly of Punjab, Lahore was patently incorrect and erroneous and cannot be sustained.”
It added that the act also “subverted” the governance of Punjab.
Punjab is Pakistan’s second-largest province and any party ruling the key province controls the politics of the country. For the PML-N, losing Punjab means losing the Centre. Political pandits believe that the ruling coalition is now vulnerable.
Tuesday’s outcome provides a “massive opportunity” to PTI chairman Khan to build further pressure on the rulers to call for fresh elections and also corner the PML-N in Punjab which is considered a stronghold of the Sharifs.