By Xinhua
Islamabad : The Supreme Court of Pakistan Friday refused to stay the upcoming presidential election, a local TV channel Dawn News reported.
Hearing the petitions filed by two presidential poll candidates challenging President Pervez Musharraf’s candidature, the Supreme Court said it would uphold the Election Commission’s agenda for presidential elections.
A 10-member bench of the court announced that a final notification of the result would not be given until Oct 17.
If re-elected, Musharraf will not be allowed to take oath before a final verdict on the petitions is given, the ruling said.
Two presidential candidates, former Supreme Court judge Wajeehuddin Ahmed and Makhdoom Amin Fahim, the acting chief of opposition Pakistan People’s Party (PPP), Tuesday filed petitions in the Supreme Court, challenging Musharraf’s candidature.
The petitions argued that Musharraf could not contest presidential elections while holding the office of the army chief. They asked the court to stay the presidential elections.
A Supreme Court ruling on Sep 28 had allowed Musharraf to take part in the presidential elections in uniform.
The presidential election is scheduled for Saturday.