ISLAMABAD, Jan 10 – A lawmaker in Pakistan was disqualified for holding a fake graduation degree, a media report said Friday.
Qaimos Khan of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), member of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa assembly, was disqualified by the election tribunal Thursday for forging his graduation degree, the Dawn newspaper reported.
The tribunal also ordered the Election Commission to conduct re-election in the constituency, the report added.
An election petition was filed by Awami National Party (ANP) candidate Haider Ali, challenging Qaimos Khan’s election.
The petitioner claimed that Qaimos Khan had mentioned in his nomination papers in 2008 elections that he was a graduate as at that time, the condition was mandatory for contesting elections, but produced a forged graduation degree of the Bahauddin Zakariya University, Multan, according to the Dawn report.
Appearing for the petitioner, lawyer Waqar Ahmad contended that Qaimos Khan did his matriculation in 1962 and passed intermediate examination in Quetta in 2005.
He said that interestingly within a year, the lawmaker did his graduation from the Bahauddin Zakariya University in 2006.
The lawyer said under the relevant rules, a candidate had to clear graduation examination in two years and not in a single year, which meant that he had produced a forged degree in 2008.
The lawyer added that Qaimos Khan had submitted an undertaking along with his nomination papers in 2008 that he had been providing correct information.
“Although the condition of graduation was not applicable in the 2013 general elections, but as he had provided wrong information during the 2008 elections, he was not righteous and sagacious, which was a qualification given in Articles 62 and 63 of the Constitution to be a lawmaker,” he said.
Meanwhile, Qaimos Khan’s lawyer said the evidence on record could not prove that his client had a forged degree.
He said Khan had a genuine degree and had appeared in examination conducted by the Bahauddin Zakariya University. — IANS
