EC rejects Bhutto146;s poll papers

Former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto lost another round in her comeback bid on Friday when election officials said she could not c...

Former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto lost another round in her comeback bid on Friday when election officials said she could not contest October polls as she had been convicted of failing to answer corruption charges.

Bhutto, living in self-imposed exile in Britain, said she was 8216;8216;very shocked8217;8217; by the decision, adding she would appeal to the election tribunal and, if necessary, the High Court. 8216;8216;I am going to continue fighting,8217;8217; she said.

Friday8217;s ruling was on Bhutto8217;s nomination to run in the small southern town of Ratto Dero. She has also been nominated in her home town of Larkana, about 26 km away and for another seat reserved for women. Decisions on these are due to be announced on Sunday.

Bhutto said she would consider returning to Pakistan if her nomination was approved even though she faced arrest. 8216;8216;I can contest the election from prison,8217;8217; she said. 8216;8216;I am confident of winning even if I am in prison.8217;8217;

A lawyer for Bhutto, Ayaz Soomro, accused election authorities of 8216;8216;double standards8217;8217; after poll officials in Lahore gave preliminary approval on Thursday for another former premier, Nawaz Sharif, to contest the October 10 polls.

Those officials said no one had objected to Sharif8217;s nomination, even though the military government has said he, like Bhutto, would be arrested if he returned from exile to Pakistan.

Ikhlaq Hussain Larik, Ratto Dero8217;s returning officer, cited Bhutto8217;s conviction for failing to answer corruption charges, for which she was sentenced to three years8217; jail in July. 8216;8216;She8217;s been convicted by an accountability court. She8217;s not qualified to contest elections,8217;8217; he said.

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Under controversial constitutional changes introduced by military ruler Pervez Musharraf this month, anyone convicted of failing to answer court charges is disqualified from the polls. About 100 Bhutto supporters shouted slogans outside the election office in a protest against the announcement.

A former deputy speaker of the National Assembly during Bhutto8217;s tenure, Ashraf Abbassi, called the decision unfair. 8216;8216;It appears that this was dictated by some one,8217;8217; he said.

All nominations still require formal approval by the Election Commission following an objection and appeals process lasting until September 12.

It was unclear why Sharif8217;s nomination was accepted when Bhutto8217;s was rejected. However, analysts say the military and Musharraf consider Bhutto a greater threat given her still considerable popularity.

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Akram Sheikh, a former President of the Supreme Court Bar Association, said Bhutto8217;s nomination should not have been rejected as she had not actually been convicted of corruption. On Thursday, Bhutto8217;s PPP welcomed the acceptance of the nomination of Sharif, who has become an ally in adversity. Reuters