Long march plan: Last-ditch effort fails to change Qadri’s mind

MQI chief spells out three demands; calls for dissolution of ECP, neutral interim set-up.

LAHORE:

A last-ditch effort by the government on Saturday failed to make influential scholar Tahirul Qadri change his mind. Qadri rebuffed the latest effort hours before he was to set off from here to lead his “million-man march” to the federal capital.

Appearing at a joint news briefing with Deputy Prime Minister Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi and Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain after their brief talks in Lahore, the Minhajul-Quran International (MQI) chief praised the two for their “sincere efforts” – but refused to budge on his demands.

Asked about his seven-point charter of demands, he spelt out only three, saying the rest he would disclose at Islamabad’s D Chowk on Monday (January 14) outside the Parliament House.

Firstly, Dr Qadri demanded dissolution of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) which, he believes, is largely ineffective. He claimed that four provincial governments got appointed provincial chief election commissioners of their own choosing. “How such a commission can ensure a neutral caretaker set-up?”

Secondly, Dr Qadri demanded the government announce a neutral interim government following consultation with all stakeholders. The caretaker set-up should work under the ECP.

Asked if the military and judiciary were stakeholders, he said that under Article 224(a) of the Constitution, the two institutions should be consulted if the government and opposition fail to reach consensus.

Thirdly, Dr Qadri demanded that next elections be held under Articles 62(n), 63(i),(o) and 218(3) of the Constitution. Articles 62(n) and 63(i),(o) disqualify candidates who are defaulters of tax and other government dues, and/or have any loans under their name written off.  Article 218(3), meanwhile, deals with making sure elections are conducted in accordance with the law and free from corrupt practices.

Dr Qadri spelt out his demands – but would not say how these would be implemented. He also revealed his electoral reforms roadmap.

He demanded the enforcement of Sections 77 to 81 of the Representation of People Act 1976 “in letter and spirit”. Under the act, the security period for the nomination papers of candidates should be fixed at one month. Dr Qadri elaborated that the caretaker set-up should reserve 30 out of its 90 days to verify details of candidates, including assets and taxes, etc.



He also called for the implementation of the Supreme Court ruling on a seven-point electoral reform plan.

According to the ruling, the ECP must check financial history of candidates and screen them for any violations or corrupt practices, monitor election expenses and use of official transport, carry out door-to-door voters’ verification across the country and make voting compulsory.

The ECP must also explore alternatives to current method of deciding winning candidates – the court ruling observed that the principle of majority is violated if the aggregate of losing candidates’ vote exceeds the winning candidate’s votes. The ruling directed the ECP to frame rules in this regard and implement them as soon as possible.

Despite their failure to convince Dr Qadri to change his mind, the Chaudhrys did seem to reach some form of compromise: Dr Qadri agreed to discuss his charter of demands with the government and said he would call off his rally midway if the government agreed to fulfill them.

Otherwise, a final round of negotiations would be held in Islamabad on Monday (January 14), following which Dr Qadri would unveil his future strategy.

Speaking to the media following two rounds of dialogue with Dr Qadri, Chaudhry Shujaat and Chaudhry Pervaiz expressed hope that Dr Qadri’s three demands would be accepted by the time he reached Islamabad.

Meanwhile, Dr Qadri told reporters that the government had a 24-hour window – the time it would take him and his followers to reach Islamabad – to decide how it will implement his demands and provide him a guarantee that they would indeed be fulfilled. He added that Dr Khalid Ranjha, who met him alongside the Chaudhrys on Saturday, would work out legal issues pertaining to the implementation of his demands.

Reactions

Interior Minister Rehman Malik on Saturday termed Dr Qadri’s long march an “anti-democratic attack”, while Punjab Law Minister Rana Sanaullah said the move would create chaos in the country.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 13^th, 2013.

Correction: In an earlier version of this story, an incorrect article number of the Constitution was mentioned. The error has been fixed.