Poll rigging: Tehreek-e-Insaf wants dismembered body to speak up

The committee was dismantled after calls from several political leaders.


Qamar Zaman September 01, 2013
The committee was dismantled after calls from several political leaders. PHOTO: FILE

ISLAMABAD:


The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) wants the parliamentary committee set up to probe complaints of rigging to at least share its recommendations to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) for improving the system.


“The parliamentary committee should give its recommendations to the ECP for the improvement of system so that such incidents do not take place in future,” said Asad Umer, PTI’s newly elected MNA from Islamabad.

Allegations of riggings in general elections had been raised by the PTI in particular and other opposition groups in general and, in order to address the issue, the government had suggested a parliamentary committee to probe the allegations.

The committee, which was in initial stages and was in the process of discussing the terms of reference, was dismantled after calls from several political leaders that existence of any such committee in the presence of election tribunals was illegal.

Asad Umer, responding to a question, said that the committee should give its recommendations even if they were not binding on the commission.



PTI deputy information secretary Adnan Ahmed Randhawa, while talking to The Express Tribune, said the party was wronged in the elections and the by-polls.

“Our mandate has been stolen and it is our democratic right to demand investigation into incidents of rigging,” he said.

“The government did announce it would investigate 40 constituencies against our demand of probe in only four constituencies, but practically nothing has been done,” Randhawa added.

He said that the party had requested the Supreme Court to give some direction to the election tribunals for speedy disposal of the election matters.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 1st, 2013.

COMMENTS

Replying to X

Comments are moderated and generally will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive.

For more information, please see our Comments FAQ