ORDER iFTIKHAR HUSSAIN CHAUDHRY, C.J.- Sheikh Muhammad Akram, respondent No. 1 herein, submitted nomination persons for the office of Nazim, Tehsil Jhang. Liaquat Ali petitioner raised. objections qua nomination of Sheikh Muhammad Akram. The objections related to Marticulation Certificate of the candidate. with regard to non- declaration of assests and non-submission of lection expenses in Form-XVII for the previous election. Teh objections were overruled by the Returning Officer and nomination papers of respondent No. 1 were accepted by order dated 16.9.2005.
2. Liaquat Ali filed an appeal, It was urged that Sheikh Muhammad Akram had not given full particulars of his property in Form-XIX, inasmuch as, he had not declared his assets relating to Shalimar Transport Company and also a Shalimar Flying Station, located at Kot Khaira. Certain other grounds were also urged before the appellate authority. The appellate authority, however, rejected the appeal on the ground that no evidence showing that bus stand was exclusively owned and constructed by Sheikh Muhammad Akram had been produced.
3. Aggrieved of order dated 16.9.2005 passed by Returning Officer and order dated 20.9.2005 passed by the appellate authority/District & Sessions Judge, Jhang, present petition was submitted. The petition was posted for hearing on 27.9.2005, when counsel for the petitioner sought a short adjournment. When the petition was listed for further proceedings on 28.9.2005 Mr. Asif Mehmood Cheema, Advocate appeared of his own, as counsel for Sheikh Muhammad Akram respondent. Learned counsel for the parties were heard and then hearing of the matter was postponed to 30.9.2005, as' learned counsel for the respondent submitted that he would produce evidence to show that Mst. Afshan Shahid was proprietor of Shalimar Flying Coach Service and respondent Sheikh Muhammad Akram had nothing to do with that business.
4. Learned counsel for the petitioner contended that Sheikh Muhammad Akram had submitted declaration in Form-XIX and had, inter alia, disclosed that he was owner of a plot; Vicky Hotel, Ayub Chowk, Jhang Sardar and had also shown 30% "Sarmaya Tameer" Building, but factual position was that he himself had, as Tehsil Nazim, sanctioned a building for construction of wagon/bus stand and owner of that wagon stand was Sheikh Muhammad Akram himself. A copy of sanctioned plan was also shown by learned counsel and was perused by learned counsel for respondent, as well. It was submitted that petitioner also obtained a D-Class Wagon Stand licence showing him to be owner of more than 8 flying coaches and, as a matter of fact, M/s. Shalimar Flying Coaches, Vicky Hotel, Jhang was owner of those coaches and this enterprise was exclusively owned by Sheikh Muhammad Akram and he had suppressed this information, while making declaration and was thus liable to be. Disqualified, It was submitted that licence stood renewed upto 17.7.2005 and, thereafter, it would be renewed in due course. Learned counsel also referred to an application submitted before Chief Election Commissioner of Pakistan wherein Sheikh Muhammad Akram had complained that vehicles of their Shalimar Transport Company were being rounded up by police and had also closed their bus-stand
5. Learned counsel for the respondent, on the other hand, submitted that Sheikh Muhammad Akram did own property where a wagon stand was, subsequently, being operated but that was transferred to Mrs.* Afshan Shahid, who, now, was proprietor of Shalimar Flying Coaches and she had paid the income tax for the year 2004 as well as for the financial year ending 30th June. He submitted two documents in this regard, as well. He also produced a gift deed showing that Shalimar Flying Coach was transferred to Mrs. Afshan Shahid but gift deed, as a matter of fact, showed that only Income of the transport company was gifted to Mst. Afshan. Shahid.
6. Learned counsel for the petitioner submitted that this, in all probability, was done in order to avoid the income tax liability. But as far as the wagon stand, its building or the transport company was concerned, that was never transferred to Mst. Afshan Shaid and none of the documents supported the stand of respondent, It was argued that he lower Tribunals had not taken into account these documents nor have considered the arguments and their orders thus were liable to be set aside on that score, as well.
7. Sheikh Muhammad Akram submitted Form-XIX along-with the nomination papers submitted by him for the office of Tehsil Nazim, Jhang. He had declared property at serial No. 2 in Form-XIX as "plot Viky Hotel, Ayub Chowk, Jhang Sadar - 30% "Sarmayat Tameer Building". The declaration has been worded dubiously, It does not indicate whether investment was made in the building or a part of the building was owned by the candidate. At any rate, neither any bus-stand nor any transport service or flying coaches owned by the candidate, were declared by him. Record produced before the Court shows that Sheikh Muhammad Akram was owner of 2 Kanals, 1 Marla of land situate in revenue estate Jhang Chak Janoobi, which was described as "gher mumkan kothi". Subsequently, Vicky Hotel was . Constructed thereon and numerous shops were rented out to other people. An undertaken given by Sheikh Muhammad Akram to the Regional Transport Authority that in case D- Class Wagon Stand was sanctioned in the name of Shalimar Flying Coach, Jhang, Faisalabad Road, the building of restaurant located at that place would be demolished. Another letter addressed to Regional Transport Authority shows that he had rented out one shop to a Mobile Phone Company and had given undertaking to District Regional Transport Authority that he would include that shop in the wagon stand, as well. A D-Class Wagon Stand licence was, therefore, issued in the name of Sheikh Muhammad Akram. In the said application, he had claimed that he was owner of more than 8 flying coaches. Copy of registration of numerous vehicles has been produced, which show that they were registered in the name of M/s. Shalimar Flying Coach. The D- Class Wagon Stand licence issued in the name of Shiekh Muhammad Akram stood renewed upto 17.7.2005 showing that the wagon stand and the transport company were in operation for the last two years.' A D-Class Wagon Stand licence cannot be granted to a person unless he is shown to be owner of a number of vehicles. D-Class Wagon Stand can be used for vehicles owned by a particular party. Vehicles belonging to other parties or individuals, ordinarily, are not allowed to be operated therefrom.
8. The material brought on record or shown to the Court (without objection from either of the parties) conclusively proved- that Sheikh Muhammad Akram was owner of premises of D-Class Wagon Stand located at the plot, which he had declared to be a plot of Vicky Hotel. Now wagon stand existed at the site. Similarly, Sheikh Muhammad Akram was owner of Shalimar Flying Coach Services. Mst. Afshan Shahid was gifted the income of the said company/enterprise. She had paid a sum of Rs. 28,010/- as income tax against income of Rs. 3,10,000/- in the year 2004. She had paid Rs. 30,000/- as income tax for the financial year 2005. These documents produced by respondent himself show that Shalimar Flying Coach, Jhang was an operational business and was yielding considerable income. The assets of the transport service, without doubt, were of Sheikh Muhammad Akram. Mst. Afshan Shahid was neither owner of the wagon stand nor of the vehicles.
Sheikh Muhammad Akram had consciously and deliberately withheld this information, while submitting Form-XIX. It was property, which was quite valuable. These assets, admittedly, were not declared by Sheikh Muhammad Akram in Form-XIX. His nomination papers, therefore, were wrongly accepted by the Returning Officer and the District Returning Officer. The Supreme Court of Pakistan in a recent case (un-reported so far) i.e. C.P.No. 2483/2005 (Muhammad Jamil Vs. Munawwar Khan) rejected nomination papers of a candidate for the office of Nazim, on similar grounds.
9. Learned counsel for the petitioner also alluded to certain other infirmities in the nomination of Sheikh Muhammad Akram but since those were not pressed before the appellate authority, those are not being looked into.
10. For the aforesaid reasons, the writ petition is allowed. Orders dated 16.9.2005 passed by Returning Officer and order dated 20.9.2005 passed by appellate authority/D&SJ, Jhang, are declared to have been passed without lawful authority and shall be of no legal effect. As a consequence, nomination papers of Sheikh Muhammad Akram shall be deemed to have been rejected.