Musharraf, Ashraf disqualified from contesting May elections

DPA/IslamabadPakistani election authorities disqualified both former president Pervez Musharraf and former premier Raja Pervez Ashraf from running in May parliamentary elections, due to various criminal allegations, officials said yesterday. Both can still appeal to higher courts. Musharraf was disqualified because of ongoing trials he faces.   A regional tribunal in Peshawar disqualified him after hearing an appeal against his nomination from a resident of the northern border town of Chitral, an official familiar with the ruling told DPA on condition of anonymity. The move rules out his eligibility in the fourth and last of the constituencies in which he applied to campaign, after the three others rejected his candidacy on similar grounds. Ahmad Raza Qasuri, a legal aide and senior vice-president of Musharraf’s All Pakistan Muslim League party, confirmed the disqualification, but said the former ruler would appeal the rejection with the Supreme Court soon. “We hope the Supreme Court will give us a stay (against disqualifications) and then Musharraf can participate in the election,” Qasuri told DPA. Musharraf faces charges of providing insufficient security to former premier Benazir Bhutto before her assassination in 2007, of involvement in the killing of a Baloch tribal chieftain, and of restricting movement of senior judges when he was the president. Meanwhile, Ashraf had challenged the rejection of his application by an election official last week, but an appellate tribunal validated the disqualification late Monday. Ashraf, a nominee of Pakistan People’s Party, failed the eligibility criteria after a court ordered election officials to check whether he “can be believed as sagacious, righteous ... and (trustworthy),” Election Commission spokesman Iftikhar Raja said. He faces several corruption allegations relating to his time as premier and minister for power and water. Ashraf could also challenge the appellate tribunal’s decision at the provincial high court, and then the Supreme Court, the Election Commission’s official Mohamed Nawaz explained. His aides have also said they would challenge his disqualification. Ashraf stepped down last month after the government completed its full, five-year term. The Islamabad High Court earlier this year cancelled contracts for road projects approved by Ashraf during his final days in office, describing them as “naked corruption.” In January, the Supreme Court ordered the National Accountability Bureau to arrest Ashraf for alleged corruption when he served as minister for water and power. The government’s anti-corruption agency ignored the order, saying it was based on flawed evidence and that it was doing its own investigation. Ashraf stands accused of receiving kickbacks when the government hired several firms to address massive energy shortages. The former prime minister planned to run for a National Assembly seat from Gujar Khan in the central province of Punjab. His elevation to the premier’s office in June 2012 followed the ouster of his predecessor, Yusuf Raza Gilani, who was convicted of contempt of court for refusing to ask Swiss authorities to reopen a graft investigation against President Asif Ali Zardari.