Mandra Toll Plaza on the Grand Trunk Road. Photo: Geo News

ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Wednesday declared two petitions challenging Nawaz Sharif?s plan to go to Lahore via the GT Road unmaintainable.

One of the petitions was filed by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf?s lawyer Usman Saeed Basra.

In his judgment, reserved a day earlier, Justice Aamer Farooq dismissed the petitions terming them unmaintainable. 

According to the petitioner, the rally is an effort to undermine the authority of the Supreme Court (SC) and pressurise the accountability court [set to hear the National Accountability Bureau?s references against the Sharif family].

The petitioner said that Nawaz Sharif ? who was ousted the former prime minister on the SC?s behest ? and members of his party are maligning the apex court by terming the ouster a ?conspiracy?.

To incite public anger, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and Nawaz have decided to lead a public rally from Islamabad to Lahore on August 9, states the petition.

Nawaz Sharif at an election rally in Sialkot in December 2007. PHOTO: Reuters

As per the petitioner, this act is tantamount to subvert and undermine the authority of the judiciary and thus an attack on the independence of the judiciary.

It also stated that with a show of power, the PML-N and Nawaz want to pressurise NAB in preparation of its corruption references against the Sharif family. The petitioner prayed to the court to direct federal government, ICT administration and Punjab government to stop this rally.