PkMAP to bring court challenge to delimitations

Chairman Achakzai says won’t allow undemocratic powers to hijack elections

QUETTA: Pashtoonkhwa Milli Awami Party (PkMAP) Chairman Mehmood Khan Achakzai has vowed not to allow anyone to limit Pashtuns’ movement in the country, saying the Election Commission of Pakistan has violated its own rules during delimitation in the country and we will approach the courts to seek justice.

“Since the province emerged, we have been yelling about prejudice against the Pashtun population as some forces are deliberately showing less than the actual Pashtun population,” said the PkMAP chairman while addressing a news conference at Quetta Press Club on Friday.



Senator Usman Khan Kakar, former opposition leader of the Balochistan Assembly Abdul Rahim Ziaratwal, and other party leaders were in attendance.

Achakzai said, “PkMAP does not accept the recent delimitation process conducted by the ECP as it negatively affects the Pashtuns in the province.”

He announced that his party was going to approach the court to force ECP to redraw the constituencies.

“Some areas having 200,000 population have been declared a separate constituency, but in the Pashtun belt, seven areas with 300,000 population, have not been declared a constituency which clearly shows ECP’s negligence and injustice towards the Pashtuns,” Achakzai said.



He demanded impartial and equal delimitation across the country from union council level to National Assembly otherwise “we have decided to file a petition in court against the ECP.

On general elections, Achakzai said, “From day one, PkMAP has been demanding free and fair elections across the country. We will accept whoever is elected through proper electoral process, but won’t let undemocratic powers hijack the elections.”

He said, “My name is being aired on media with negative comments for supporting Pashtun Tahafuz Movement, but today what Manzoor Pashteen is demanding, I have been raising the issue of injustice with the people of tribal areas since 1996.”



The PkMAP chairman said, “We have been demanding that all people living in Pakistan must be treated equally so that no one can harm our country.”

On deposed prime minister Nawaz Sharif, he said, “I stood with Sharif because he believes in a strong federation and supremacy of law. We have been abused on social as well as mainstream media for supporting him. Despite so much criticism and disqualification by the Supreme Court, Sharif is still a famous and prominent leader of the country, and he is the only who can save this country from further isolation and destruction.”

On the newly-formed Balochistan Awami Party (BAP), Achakzai said, “Unfortunately public leaders cannot be invented, but people who always compromise public interest for their own personal benefits are being brought into the mainstream as leaders of Balochistan.”