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Civil Appeal No.188 of 2019 . 2 No.1 was void and the Election Commission of Pakistan may be directed to hold fresh election in the constituency (PS-11, Larkana-II). Respondent No.1 contested the petition and filed a written statement denying all allegations levelled in the petition. The Election Tribunal framed as many as 7 issues and put the parties to trial. Such trial culminated in dismissal of the petition through the impugned judgment. Hence, this appeal. 3. The learned counsel for the Appellant submits that concealment of assets by Respondent No.1 was sufficient to warrant his disqualification and annulling his election notification as a member of the Provincial Assembly in view of the law laid down by this Court in the case of Speaker, National Assembly of Pakistan v. Habib Akram (PLD 2018 SC 678). He further maintains that besides nomination papers and false declaration, the sworn affidavit submitted by Respondent No.1 with his nomination papers provided additional grounds for his disqualification and also warranted contempt proceedings against him as per declaration of this Court in the aforenoted judgment. The learned ASC submits that Respondent No.1 is a seasoned politician and could not be granted the benefit of ignorance of the legal requirements of full and truthful disclosure of assets or bona fide misstatement of his assets. He maintains that Respondent No.1 had not only mis-declared his own assets but also suppressed agricultural properties/assets of his dependent children (minor sons). He has emphasized the fact that the mala fide of

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Khuhro v. Khan

Judgment

Question Presented: Whether misstatements on the candidate’s election papers are sufficient to declare an election void.

Alleged Acts: The appellant contests the election results on the grounds that the prevailing candidate made false declaration on the candidacy documents. The appellant sought a declaration that the election results were void and that the election be reordered. The appellant argues that the candidate made false declarations my misstating assets of himself and his dependents. However, the respondent states that the representation made on the candidacy documents are from misunderstanding on property documents and the difference of 140 reported acres of land stems from the candidate solely reporting the property in his direct control and ownership. The candidate further stated that there was no ill intent behind the omission because there would be no measurable advantage in the land acreage difference.

Summary: Declaring an election void requires an invalid candidacy, illegal, or corruption actions. The evidentiary burden requires that a false statement be intentional under the circumstances. The court found and the respondent admitted that he did not declare his entire land holdings, as asserted by the appellant. Section 137(4) permits candidates may face legal liability with 120 days from the date of submission if he commits and offense or corrupt practice. The respondent made no effort to fix the mistakes in the asset report. Further, the court determined that the respondent was aware of the land transfer back into his name as early as 2014.

Conclusion: The court determined that the respondent concealed his assets and did so not by mistake or clerical error. Therefore, the election of the respondent was annulled and the Election Commission order to hold a new election for the position in the Provincial Assembly.

Legal Issue(s)

Candidate Registration
Electoral Integrity

Applicable Law(s): Pakistan Constitution Article 62(1)(f)

Region: Asia-Pacific

Country: Pakistan

Language of Decision

English

Court: Supreme Court

Election Type: General

Date of decision: Aug 1, 2019

Geolocation

Latitude: 33.84616314

Longitude: 73.04529661

: Geolocation

Primary Documents

Khuhro v. Khan.pdf
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Election Judgments - IFES

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Khuhro v. Khan

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