ISLAMABAD   -  The Supreme Court of Pakistan Thursday dismissed former army chief Gen (retd) Pervez Musharraf’s appeal against rejection of his nomination papers for National Assembly seat from Karachi.

A three-member bench of the apex court headed by Justice Umar Ata Bandial conducted hearing of the appeal against Sindh High Court (SHC) verdict and dismissed the same for being infructuous. The bench said that if Pervez Musharraf again contests election then he can defend the objections on his nomination papers. It noted that the former COAS had submitted papers for contesting election for National Assembly in 2013, which termed expired on 2018.

Muhammad Iqbal Hashmi Advocate representing the former army chief said that the present appeal is against the SHC, while the other one, against the Peshawar High Court (PHC), is not fixed today (Thursday).

The bench directed the SC office to fix the second appeal against PHC before a larger bench.

Musharraf’s counsel informed that his client is out of the country therefore could not contact him. He prayed that both the appeals be heard together by the same bench. However, Justice Bandial said that the appeal against SHC verdict has been dismissed, while the second appeal will be decided when it is fixed. The SHC and PHC in 2013 had rejected Musharraf’s election petitions. A larger bench of SHC, headed by Justice Maqbool Baqar, in April 2013 had dismissed Musharraf plea. The nomination papers of the former military dictator for NA-250 were rejected by the concerned returning officer on the grounds that he suspended the constitution and detained the judges, and he was liable to be tried.