Imran Khan out of election race as LHC turns down plea for nomination papers

• Lahore High Court upholds RO and appellate tribunal’s decisions.
• Imran was eyeing to contest elections from NA-122 and NA-89.
• 3-member bench headed by Justice Ali Baqar Najafi issues order.

LAHORE: The Lahore High Court (LHC) has turned down Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan’s appeal against the rejection of nomination papers for the February 8 general elections.

The high court upheld the decisions of the returning officer (RO) and appellate tribunal given against acceptance of the disqualified former premier’s nomination papers from NA-122 and NA-89 constituencies.

A three-member bench headed by Justice Ali Baqar Najafi heard the plea on Wednesday.

In his plea, Khan stated that his nomination papers were rejected by the RO and appellate tribunal in contrast with the facts, therefore, he should be granted permission to contest forthcoming polls.

After hearing arguments from both sides, the LHC bench rejected the politico’s appeal and upheld the previous decisions.

The ousted prime minister had filed his nomination papers from Lahore's NA-122 and Mianwali's NA-89 constituencies.

Moreover, the high court also heard a series of petitions filed by other PTI bigwigs to challenge the rejection of their nominations.

The larger bench also dismissed the appeals filed by PTI Vice Chairman Shah Mahmood Qureshi, PTI Secretary General Hammad Azhar, PTI leader Latif Khosa’s son Khurram Latif Khosa and PTI activist Sanam Javaid.

The development comes as a major blow to the party whose leadership is facing a plethora of cases — especially pertaining to the May 9 riots — with senior leaders, including Vice Chairman Shah Mahmood Qureshi and others, behind bars.