Pak court orders recount of Punjab CM election votes

Islamabad [Pakistan], July 1 : The Lahore High Court (LHC) said that the votes for the Punjab Chief Minister's elections will be counted again excluding the votes of the 25 Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) dissidents.
The verdict was announced by a five-member bench headed by Justice Sadaqat Ali Khan of the LHC comprised of Justice Shahid Jamil, Justice Shehram Sarwar, Justice Sajid Mehmood Sethi and Justice Tariq Saleem Sheikh.
Some objections were raised by Justice Sethi, while the others accepted the pleas, Geo News reported.
The pleas of the Pakistan Muslim League-Q (PML-Q) were also dismissed by the court.
The candidate who secures a majority of the votes during the recounting will be declared the Chief Minister of the province.
"We could, possibly direct fresh election after declaring the election as unlawful but it would nullify the direction by the apex court to the state functionaries for the conduct of election in accordance with the Constitution and the decision by learned Division Bench of this Court, appointing Deputy Speaker as presiding officer and directing for the conduct of the election on 16th April 2022," Geo News reported citing the verdict.
As per the court order, the Punjab Governor has to ensure that the Punjab Assembly session that will be held at 4 pm on July 1 is held without fail, and is not adjourned without holding the poll.
The governor also has to ensure that the new CM will administer an oath on July 2 by 11 am.
Meanwhile, Pakistan Muslim League-N (PML-N) leader Hamza Shahbaz on Thursday said that his party respects the decision taken by the LHC which will bring an end to Punjab's three-month-long constitutional crisis.
"The Opposition has pushed the province into a constitutional crisis to appease its ego which had to be faced by the people. I do not believe in politics for the sake of it but consider it as a service," Geo News reported citing Hamza.
CM Hamza further said that he hopes that the effects of this decision will be "good" for the people of Punjab.
On Thursday, Lahore High Court (LHC) annulled Punjab Chief Minister Hamza Shahbaz's election.
Hamza was elected as chief minister of Punjab in a ruckus-marred session of the Punjab Assembly on April 16, 2022.
The PTI and PML-Q had challenged the election of Hamza Shahbaz in a chaotic session, reported The News International.
Hamza was elected as the new chief minister with 197 votes. While his opponent, Pervez Elahi did not receive any votes as his party and PTI had boycotted the polls.