File photo of Yousaf Raza Gilani. Tony Ashby—AFP
The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Friday acquitted Senator Yousaf Raza Gilani, dismissing a petition filed by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) seeking his disqualification from the Senate over allegations of corruption.
In a statement, the electoral body said it had found no link between Gilani and the case and had thus dismissed it. However, it said, instructions had been issued to the Islamabad district election commissioner to investigate Gilani’s son Haider Gilani, and MNAs Faheem Khan and Jamil Ahmad Khan for their involvement in “corrupt practices” under Sections 167 (corrupt practices) and 168 (bribery) of the Elections Act, 2017. If they are found guilty of the offenses, it noted, the accused could be imprisoned for three years or fined Rs. 100,000 or both.
The PTI had, last year, filed a petition seeking the disqualification of Yousaf Raza Gilani from the Senate on the basis of controversial audio and video clips. In the audio recording, Sindh minister Nasir Hussain Shah can allegedly be heard bargaining with four PTI lawmakers for their votes in the Senate elections, while the video shows Ali Haider Gilani allegedly explaining to PTI MNAs methods to waste their votes.
Gilani’s Senate victory had been seen as a massive spoiler, as he defeated then-ruling PTI’s candidate Hafeez Shaikh. It had prompted observers to question whether the ruling coalition still retained a majority in the National Assembly if it could not manage to elect a senator. To defeat this narrative, then-prime minister Imran Khan had taken a fresh vote of confidence, which was boycotted by the opposition, to prove he still enjoyed the support of the Lower House.