AJK SC rejects Sardar Tanveer Ilyas’ appeal against disqualification on technical grounds

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, a full court bench of the AJK High Court disqualified Sardar Tanveer 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.

Sardar Ilyas apologised both before the AJK SC and the high court, however, the AJK HC rejected his apology and held him guilty of contempt.

Subsequently, Sadar Ilyas’ legal team filed an appeal in the AJK SC today against his conviction.

SC Chief Justice Raja Saeed Akram rejected the appeal saying that it was “incompetently worded”.

AJK SC CJ 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’ lawyers to file a fresh appeal in court.

According to media reports, at a function in Islamabad on Saturday, Sardar Ilyas indirectly blamed the judiciary for affecting the performance of his government and interfering in the domain of the executive through the grant of stay orders.

Sardar Tanveer Ilyas, a member of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, was elected as the 14th prime minister of Azad Kashmir on April 18, 2022, unopposed.

PTI Chairman Imran Khan nominated Ilyas as the party’s candidate for prime minister after his predecessor, Abdul Qayyum Khan Niazi, resigned.