ISLAMABAD, JAN 30 (DNA) – The Supreme Court (SC) on Tuesday conducted a hearing regarding the interpretation of Article 62(1)(f) of the Constitution with a view to ascertaining the period of disqualification of a member of parliament.

The apex court had issued notices to former prime minister Nawaz Sharif and former Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) secretary general Jahangir Tareen to appear in person or through their counsel during the hearing of the appeals involving the interpretation of Article 62(1)(f) — the provision under which both had been disqualified. Tareen was present in court while the PML-N head was absent.

A five-judge SC bench consisting of Chief Justice Mian Saqib Nisar, Justice Sheikh Azmat Saeed, Justice Umar Ata Bandial, Justice Ijaz-ul-Ahsan and Justice Sajjad Ali Shah has taken up a set of 17 appeals against disqualification for possessing fake degrees.

Talking to the media before his appearance in court, Tareen said he should not be compared former prime minister Nawaz Sharif since the latter could not provide a money trail.

He said that the Article 62(1)(f) of the Constitution is extremely “vast” and is open to interpretation in order to ensure that everyone sentenced under the said Article does not get similar punishments since the severity of charges can differ.

Political and legal experts believe that the outcome of the case will have a great impact on the country’s future politics as it will decide the political future and fate of a number of politicians, including Sharif and Tareen.

Article 62(1)(f) says: “A person shall not be qualified to be elected or chosen as a member of Majlis-e-Shoora (Parliament) unless […] he is sagacious, righteous and non-profligate, honest and ameen, there being no declaration to the contrary by a court of law.”

The article, however, does not specify any period after which a person, who is declared disqualified under Article 62, can be eligible to contest elections of the parliament.

The court’s verdict will help end the controversy once and for all over the quantum of punishment by answering whether the disqualification of lawmakers should be for life or a specific time.