MUZAFFARABAD (Kashmir English): A writ petition has been filed in the Azad Kashmir High Court, Muzaffarabad against the procedure for the election of the President of the State, raising fears that the presidential elections may be postponed.
The application has been submitted to the High Court by Muhammad Hanif Malik, Member Azad Kashmir Council, through his lawyers Raja Amir Sharif Advocate, Raja Sajjad Ahmed Khan Advocate, Raja Qasim Sajjad Advocate, and Muhammad Faisal Farooq Advocate.
The petitioner has taken the stance in his constitutional petition that the changes made to the procedure for the election of the President of the State through the 13th Constitutional Amendment in the Interim Constitution of Azad Jammu and Kashmir 1974 are contrary to the basic structure and legal requirements of the Constitution.
The writ petition states that before the 13th Amendment, the President of Azad Kashmir was elected through a joint electoral college comprising elected members of the Legislative Assembly, Kashmir Council, and the Federal Minister of the Council Secretariat.
However, through a subsequent amendment, this system was changed, and the electoral process was limited to only the Legislative Assembly, as a result of which the right to vote was withdrawn from the members of the Kashmir Council.
The application also states that the legal procedure and rules required for such an amendment to the Constitution were not fully followed, and some amendments were included without the approval of the Federal Cabinet, due to which these actions are considered to be in conflict with the basic structure of the Constitution and the fundamental rights of the petitioner.
According to the petitioner, since the institution of the Kashmir Council still exists in the Constitution and its members are elected through the Azad Kashmir Legislative Assembly, withdrawing their right to vote is an unconstitutional and illegal act.
The writ petition further states that the Prime Minister of Pakistan, as Chairman of the Kashmir Council, formed a high-level committee in 2018 to review the legal and constitutional implications of the Constitutional Amendment, but this committee has not yet been able to present its report.
The petitioner has requested the court to order the said committee to complete and present its recommendations soon.
The application also requests the High Court to declare the ‘controversial’ amendments made in Articles 2 and 5 of the Interim Constitution of 1974 null and void or send this matter back to the concerned authorities for reconsideration.
At the same time, the court has also been requested to issue orders to stop the elections for the President of Azad Kashmir until this constitutional application is decided.
The writ petition states that the petitioner is an elected member of the Kashmir Council, and the proposed electoral process affects his constitutional right to vote, which is why he has approached the High Court for justice.
According to legal circles, this writ petition has brought an important legal question before the court regarding the constitutional structure of Azad Kashmir and the electoral system of the President of the State, and its possible effects can be seen on both the upcoming presidential election and constitutional interpretation.
It should be noted that during the tenure of the Muslim League (N), the powers of the Kashmir Council were abolished through the 13th amendment, and all powers were taken over by the Azad Kashmir Assembly and its members.
Kashmir Council member Muhammad Hanif Malik has served as the former chairman of the PML-N Azad Kashmir wing and is considered among the founding leaders of the PML-N.
It is still unknown whether this writ was filed in consultation with the leadership or not, as PML-N leader and former Prime Minister Raja Farooq Haider considers the 13th constitutional amendment his major achievement.
Late President Barrister Sultan Mahmood
More than a month has passed since the demise of Azad Kashmir President Barrister Sultan Mahmood, and the schedule for presidential election has not yet been issued.
There is a fear that the election may be further delayed due to the current writ petition.
