PTI blasts political rivals for attacking high court

ISLAMABAD:

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Barrister Gohar Khan came down hard on the PDM leadership for making hue and cry over the Peshawar High Court’s (PHC) ruling regarding PTI’s electoral symbol, saying they were too scared to face the nation.

He said that a conspiracy was being hatched to deprive PTI of its iconic electoral symbol “bat” and even to oust the party from the electoral race. Addressing a news conference here on Friday flanked by PTI senior leader Sardar Latif Khan Khosa, PTI Spokesperson for Legal Affairs Shoaib Shaheen and PTI founder Imran Khan's lawyer Intizar Hussain Panjhotha, PTI chairman stated that the ‘bat’ was not mere PTI’s electoral symbol but it was also the symbol of the expectations of the entire Pakistani nation.

He asserted that political parties were attacking the judiciary after the PHC suspended the Election Commission of Pakistan’s (ECP) verdict, stripping PTI of its symbol “bat”. Barrister Gohar said that the political leaders, whose defeat were imminent, were trying to make the PHC’s decision controversial.

“The Supreme Court has settled that snatching the electoral symbol is equivalent to dissolving a political party and this right only lies with the apex court in Article 17 of the Constitution,” he said. “Who will be responsible for the horse-trading that will take place after snatching the election symbol,” the PTI chief asked. He asked who would get 227 reserved seats if the election symbol “bat” was taken away from PTI, which was the electoral symbol of over 70 per cent of the Pakistani population.

Read ECP decides to take ‘bat’ back from PTI

He said that all these political leaders of the PDM would not be able to gain anything on February 8, as they could not even win their own seats if free, fair and transparent elections were conducted that was the reason they were hell-bent on taking the ‘bat’ away from PTI.

The PTI chairman stressed that he was a representative of Imran, who “was, is and will always remain our leader” irrespective wherever he was. He pointed out that the popularity of the PTI could be judged by the fact that the highest number of nomination papers had been filed by PTI candidates.

“If you take away our electoral symbol, will all of them contest as independent candidates? If this happens, who will be responsible for horse-trading after the polls?” Barrister Gohar further stated that the upcoming elections were the most crucial for the country and derailing them would result in a huge loss for the country, advising the ECP to fulfil its constitutional responsibilities to ensure free, fair and transparent polls by proving level playing to all political parties.“Is it not better for the judiciary to look into this matter?” he asked, demanding that the judiciary should look into the issue of the “bat” symbol.

He said that the political opponents had been attacking the judiciary since the last day instead of accepting decisions or adopting a legal course because it was their history to attack the courts.

The PTI chairman lamented that they were even holding ECP hostage, adding that they were expecting a statement from the election watchdog. He emphasised that PTI was conducting the fairest and transparent party polls in the country, adding that ECP had no power to intervene in the intraparty polls issue.

Read PML-N terms PHC decision an attack on ECP

Barrister Gohar stated that depriving the party of its electoral symbol was tantamount to dismantling the party altogether. “We request the people to remain calm in all circumstances,” he said, warning that if the election was not free and fair, the economy would suffer the most.

“Restraining or taking aspirants away from filing nominations or getting their forms rejected through executive (ROs) is not election. Despite all odds, we fielded more candidates. Remnants of PDM are too scared to face the nation. But the people will speak and you will hear them for sure on February 08, 2024, InshaAllah,” he added.

Barrister Gohar Khan urged that proper and immediate steps should be taken to put the country on the right path.“We have filed petitions in the ECP against snatching of nomination papers of our candidates and detentions of their seconders and proposers,” he maintained.

Barrister Gohar demanded the judiciary take notice of these unlawful and unconstitutional measures at the earliest because the attempts to push the largest party of the country out of the election were akin to derailing democracy.

Talking about the maltreatment meted out to PTI Vice Chairman Shah Mehmood Qureshi, Barrister Gohar said that the manner in which Qureshi was arrested and kept in a cold room overnight was an attempt to pressurize him.

He requested the judiciary to look into the issue, as they asked the nation to remain peaceful and not take matters into their own hands. Speaking on the occasion, Latif Khosa said that stated that an electoral symbol was extremely important as it was used for the identification of a political party, particularly in areas where literacy rates were low.

“But taking away the symbol, you will deprive the nation of its fundamental rights,” he added. Lashing out at the fugitive Nawaz Sharif for the leniencies being shown to him, PTI senior leader said that a fugitive was seen off at Heathrow Airport by our ambassador.

Read PTI lawyers decry ‘illegal scrutiny’

Latif Khosa recalled that on the one hand, the country's most beloved leader Imran Khan was called for biometrics and tortured to arrest in the high court room, while on the other, a biometric machine was delivered to the airport for an ineligible person.

Similarly, he went on to say that the nomination papers of the convicted person were accepted effortlessly despite being disqualified for life by the top court. In contrast, PTI candidates’ nomination papers were rejected on lame excuses and frivolous accusations.
Khosa stated that this was the worst poll rigging in the history of Pakistan but warned that the entire world was watching this in real-time.

PTI leader stated that the king was brought to the country under the infamous "London Plan" to impose on the country for the fourth time, adding that the economy was the country would sink if he was imposed as the prime minister again.

However, Latif Khosa emphasized that if someone really wanted to make this convicted person eligible to contest the polls, then a constitutional amendment would have to be done but no such constitutional amendment was possible now because there was no there was no parliament at present.

He lamented that what was happening right now was just like taking out the funeral of democracy. PTI leader stated that the courts were insulted by pushing Shah Mehmood Qureshi.

Khosa stressed the need to put an end to stage dramas because it was nothing but to make a mockery of democracy because tomorrow could be an arrow and lion on the target. Therefore, he asserted that the country could only make progress by giving power to the people's elected representatives.