MUZAFFARABAD (Kashmir English): Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) Election Commission on Thursday accepted the petition against Prime Minister of AJK Raja Faisal Mumtaz Rathore for holding two offices simultaneously for hearing and issued notices to the parties.
The petition was filed by lawyer Sardar Zahid Mosaddiq, in which he took the position that Prime Minister Faisal Mumtaz Rathore is holding two important offices simultaneously, which is unconstitutional.
The case was heard by Chief Election Commissioner Justice (retd) Mustafa Mughal and other members of the Election Commission.
The petition stated that under Article 13(1)(3) of the Constitution, the Prime Minister holds a constitutional office; therefore, holding the office of a political party simultaneously comes under the category of conflict of interest as well as breach of oath.
According to the petitioner, PM Faisal Mumtaz is discharging his constitutional responsibilities as the Prime Minister on the one hand, while on the other hand, he is also serving as the General Secretary of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) AJK chapter, which has been declared a constitutionally controversial and illegal move.
After the initial hearing, the commission has issued notices to all the parties concerned and sought detailed responses, after which further progress is expected in the next hearing.
