Ch Sarwar demands resignations of the election commission

Lahore: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf Punjab Organiser Chaudhary Mohammad Sarwar has demanded that the Chief Justice of Pakistan should take notice of threats being hurled by the PML-N ministers to tribunal judges. He called upon all political parties to join hands with the PTI for ensuring free and fair electoral process. He said the PTI was in favour of change through constitutional and democratic manner instead of  unconstitutional manner. Otherwise, he said, Imran Khan would have become prime minister quite earlier. He said the public had lost its trust on the PML-N and Election Commission of Pakistan.

Chaudhary Sarwar said that no one could trust about the free and fair local bodies’ elections in the presence of four provincial election commissioners. He said the four provincial election commissioners should be removed even through the Parliament, if required. He said the incumbent rulers’ failed policies had forced every segment of society including farmers, labourers and government employees to come out on roads and protest.

Chaudhary Sarwar was addressing a seminar on “ECP’s role in the strengthening of democracy” at Lahore High Court Bar Association on Thursday. PTI Chairman’s advisor Abdul Aleem Khan, Shoaib sidiqui, Umer sarfaraz cheema, Anees hashmi advocate and others were also present on the occasion. He said party chief Imran Khan was making one single demand that vote audit be conducted in the four constituencies soon after the general elections in 2013 but the government continued to delay using different tactics. After the tribunals’ decisions in favour of Imran Khan, Jahangir Khan Tareen and Hamid Khan, he said the worst-ever rigging in general elections had been exposed. Now, he said, the whole nation had recognised that why the PML-N government was not ready for vote audit in the four constituencies.

Referring to tribunal’s decisions, Chaudhary Sarwar asked the PML-N leaders whether this was not rigging and added that they could no more befool the masses. When opposition parties complained of rigging in local bodies’ elections, he said, Imran Khan announced within 24 hours re-poll but they back-tracked later on. He said the four provincial election commissioners were responsible for the rigging in general elections and PTI’s demand for their removal was completely within the ambit of constitution. He said many opposition parties including PPP were supporting the PTI in its just demand.

Offering to forget the previous wrongdoings, Chaudhary Sarwar said  the PML-N should remove the four provincial election commissioners through legislation to ensure that the next elections should be held in a free and fair manner. Calling for holding elections through bio-metric system, Chaudhary Sarwar said there was no problem in installing this system as India had already conducted elections through bio-metric system. If the rulers and the ECP will be ready to hold elections in a free and fair manner, he said, then the bio-metric system could be installed within few months. He regretted that the incumbent rulers did nothing during the last two-and-a-half years for the holding of free and fair elections in the country. For this reason, he said, the masses had lost their trust in the government and the ECP.

Chaudhary Sarwar said that Pakistan’s conditions were deteriorating as people were unable to get justice from the police stations and courts and added that all public institutions had become `political’. He said poor people’s miseries were multiplying by every passing day. He said the PTI was looking for positive change in the country through constitution and law of the land and added that the PTI’s struggle was constitutional and democratic.

Abdul Aleem Khan said the worst-ever rigging in general elections had been confirmed after three election tribunal decisions and rulers could never clear themselves of rigging allegations. He said the PML-N should now seek apology from the nation and commit that the next elections would be held in a free and fair manner.