Pervez Elahi is now CM Punjab, rules Supreme Court, removes Hamza Shahbaz.

ISLAMABAD -- The Supreme Court of Pakistan on Tuesday declared Deputy Speaker Dost Muhammad Mazari's ruling in the Punjab Chief Minister's election "illegal" and ruled that PTI's candidate Pervez Elahi will be the new CM of the province.

"We find that the understanding and implementation of the said short judgment as well as the provisions of Article 63A(1)(b) of the Constitution by the Deputy Speaker, Provincial Assembly of Punjab, Lahore (Respondent No.1) was patently incorrect and erroneous and cannot be sustained," said the order. It added that the act also "subverted" the governance of Punjab.

"As a result, the Ruling dated 22.07.2022 issued by Respondent No.1, Deputy Speaker, Punjab Assembly is set aside and declared to be void, without lawful authority and of no legal effect," said the Supreme Court in a 11-page short order.

The order then declared Pervez Elahi as the duly elected chief minister of Punjab as it ruled that he had obtained 186 votes compared to Hamza's 179.

The order also declared that the oath of office administered to Hamza was "without lawful authority and of no legal effect".

"Likewise all acts, deeds and things attendant and consequent upon such oath including but not limited to the notification of Respondent No.2 (Hamza Shahbaz) and the formation and swearing in of the Cabinet on his advice is also declared to be without lawful authority and of no legal effect," said the order.

The three-member bench - comprising Chief Justice of Pakistan Umar Ata Bandial, Justice Ijazul Ahsan, and Justice Muneeb Akhtar - also ordered Punjab Governor Baligh ur Rehman to administer the oath to Elahi at 11:30pm, adding that if he refuses to perform his duties, President Arif Alvi will administer the oath.

The verdict was announced after a three-hour delay, CJP Bandial had first said that the judgment would be issued at 5:45pm and later it was scheduled to be announced at 7:30pm. But the judgment was announced at around 9pm.

The proceedings went on for three days - Saturday, Monday, and Tuesday - as lawyers from all the parties presented their arguments.

Elahi - who had been defeated by Hamza Shahbaz on July 22 during the Punjab CM's election after 10 PML-Q votes were rejected by Deputy Speaker Mazari - had challenged the ruling in the SC.

The SC formed a three-member bench - headed by Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial and including Justice Munib Akhtar and Justice Ijazul Ahsan - to hear the case, but the coalition government objected...