RAWALPINDI - Former prime minister Mian Nawaz Sharif and his daughter Maryam Nawaz could not poll their votes on the day of elections on Wednesday in the Adiala Jail as they have failed to apply for the facility of postal ballots, sources informed The Nation.
They said July 15 was the last date for submitting applications for the facility before the Returning Officer of the constituency.
Mian Nawaz Sharif and Maryam Nawaz Sharif are in Adiala Jail after an accountability court convicted them in the Avenfield corruption reference and awarded 10 and 7 years imprisonment to them respectively.
According to sources, the jail authorities had failed in applying for the facility of postal ballots for two inmates Mian Nawaz Sharif and Maryam Nawaz Sharif with the Election Commission of Pakistan because of expiry of deadline.
They said both father and daughter were shifted to jail from Lahore by NAB teams on July 13 whereas July 15 was the last date for applying for the postal ballots.
“Therefore, former prime minister Mian Nawaz Sharif and his daughter Maryam Nawaz could not exercise their right of vote during detention in the jail,” sources said.
“The deadline for postal ballot facility for jail inmates was July 15 and during this period neither the duo nor the Adiala Jail authorities approached the ECP for obtaining the postal ballots that were scheduled to be delivered to returning officers and prisoners by July 22,” sources quoted District Election Commissioner Salim Akhter as saying.
They said the DEC also claimed the ECP could have entertained the applications on part of Mian Nawaz Sharif and Maryam Nawaz Sharif for giving them postal ballots even they had applied before 22 July.
Superintendent of Adiala Jail Saeed Ullah Gondal did not respond to calls when he was contacted by The Nation to know the reason as to why he had not applied for postal ballots facility for Mian Nawaz Sharif and Maryam Nawaz.