The judges accept Sharif’s 1999 conviction for hijacking which could have led to a coup. Now his chances of running in a 26 June by-election are slim. He will appeal though.

Lahore (AsiaNews) – The high court in Lahore upheld an earlier ruling that former Prime Minister and Pakistan Muslim League-N Nawaz Sharif was ineligible to stand for a by-election this week. Mr Sharif responded saying that it was a political decision, but analysts suggest that it is a defeat for the political leader in the face of an independent judiciary.

“The decision is based on conspiracy. It's a political decision,” a spokesman for Mr Sharif's PLM-N party, Siddiqul Farooq. However, in reality the judges simply found the 1999 charges against Sharif plausible.

Mr Sharif was barred from standing because he had been convicted over the hijacking in 1999 of a plane carrying then army chief General Pervez Musharraf in order to provoke a coup.

Earlier this month the country's election commission had cleared the way for the former premier to stand in the by-election. He had not been able to run in the February elections because his case was still pending before the courts.

At present it is doubtful whether he can run in one of the upcoming by-elections for eight national assembly seats and 30 provincial ones will be contested on 26 June.

Sharif announced that he intended to launch an appeal against the court’s decision.

He said that the judges were unconstitutionally appointed by President Musharraf and thus their ruling was illegitimate.

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• lahore
• high
• court
• nazaw
• sharif
• pakistan
• muslim
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• by-elections
• pervez
• musharraff
• siddiqul
• farooq
• ineligibility
• hyjacking