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The Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) Supreme Court rejected on Wednesday Sardar Tanveer Ilyas’s appeal challenging his disqualification on technical grounds.
A day earlier, in a largely unexpected move, a full court bench of the AJK High Court disqualified Ilyas from being elected or being a member of the Legislative Assembly or from holding any public office for two years after holding him guilty of contempt.
At a function in Islamabad over the weekend, Ilyas, who belongs to the PTI, had indirectly blamed the judiciary for affecting the functioning of his government and interfering in the domain of the executive through the grant of stay orders.
AJK’s superiors court — both the SC and high court — had then issued notices to the ex-premier on Monday to explain his position with regard to his “derogatory remarks about the superior judiciary in his speeches at public meetings”.
During the hearing yesterday, Ilyas apologised both before the AJK SC and the high court, however, the latter rejected his apology and held him guilty of contempt.
Subsequently, Ilyas’ legal team filed an appeal in the AJK apex court today against his conviction.
However, SC Chief Justice Raja Saeed Akram rejected the appeal saying that it was “incompetently worded”. He noted that the plea mentioned Ilyas as the prime minister even though the high court’s order was still holding ground.
The judge has allowed Ilyas’ laywers to file a fresh appeal in court.
Khawaja Farooq Ahmed named caretaker PM
Meanwhile, in a late-night development, the office of AJK’s chief secretary on Tuesday issued a notification appointing Khawaja Farooq Ahmed as the interim prime minister of the region.
“The president of Azad Jammu and Kashmir, in exercise of powers vested in him under sub-article (1) of Article 17 of the AJK Constitution, is pleased to call upon Khawaja Farooq Ahmed, the most senior minister, to perform functions of the Office of the Prime Minister until a new prime minister has been appointed and elected upon his office,” it said.
The notification was issued after a summary regarding the same was sent to the chief secretary by the AJK president.