Another Lahore High Court (LHC) judge refused on Monday to hear petitions filed by PTI leader Jamshed Iqbal Cheema and his wife Musarrat Cheema, challenging the rejection of their nomination papers for NA-133 (Lahore) by-election.
The petitions came up for hearing before a division bench, comprising Justice Shujaat Ali Khan and Justice Faisal Zaman.
Justice Zaman recused himself from the case, after which the matter was referred to the LHC chief justice to form a new bench to hear and decide it.
Last week, the LHC chief justice had reconstituted the bench after Justice Shahid Waheed had declined to hear the petitions.
Cheema and his wife had approached the LHC after an election tribunal dismissed their appeals against the returning officer’s (RO) decision to reject their nomination papers.
The petitioners had pleaded with the high court to set aside the rejection of their papers and allow them to contest the by-election scheduled for December 5.
It is pertinent to mention that the returning officer (RO) had rejected the nomination papers of Cheema and his wife Musarrat (his covering candidate) on the ground that the proposers and seconders for the two are not residents of the constituency as required under the relevant election laws.
