PTI meetings with election chief outnumber PDM’s

Despite accusing Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Sikandar Sultan Raja of meeting with the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM), it emerged on Sunday that the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) held the most meetings with the electoral chief.

These revelations emerged in the aftermath of PTI’s announcement of filing a “judicial reference” against the CEC, alongside other members of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) for allegedly violating the code of conduct.

A day ago, PTI Chairman Imran Khan directed his legal team to initiate the process of filing the reference over their meeting with a delegation of the coalition parties to discuss the prohibited funding case against the former ruling party.

Express News reported on Saturday that PTI Vice Chairman Shah Mahmood Qureshi met the electoral chief shortly after the announcement, with the meeting lasting over an hour.

The report added that various ministers of the former PTI government had also been meeting the CEC in his office. It pointed out that the meeting of the PDM delegation with the CEC is a routine matter.
Citing sources within the ECP, the report stated that the electoral chief had met the representatives of various parties. All the meetings were held in the ECP office, which is a usual thing, it added.

The report further cited sources as saying that the post held by Raja requires meeting representatives of parties who desire to meet him in his office. They told the publication that the former ruling party made the announcement to put pressure on the ECP.

The report added that sources within the ECP said that their institution was neither influenced by the previous government nor would it be influenced by this one.

On July 29, a delegation comprising members of the PDM – Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) and Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) – met officials of the electoral body and urged them to announce the long-delayed verdict in the prohibited funding case against PTI, and to act against it at the earliest as it was the institution’s ‘constitutional responsibility’.

Commenting on the meeting in his presser on Saturday, PTI leader Fawad Chaudhry said that it was a violation of the code of conduct, and they were considering a judicial reference against the CEC and other members of the ECP.