LAHORE: The Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) has decided to expeditiously complete its investigations into alleged irregularities committed in the voter lists of NA-122 and PP-147 and approach the Election Commission of Pakistan, Nadra and courts “to expose the PML-N tactics.”

At a meeting chaired by PTI Punjab organiser Chaudhry Sarwar here on Sunday, Abdul Aleem Khan said the party was collecting “irrefutable evidence” and would not allow the PML-N to play a one-sided match. He said thousands of complaints of shifting of votes without consent had reached the PTI and similarly thousands of new votes were registered in this constituency. He said all the proofs would soon be presented before the media before approaching the ECP, Nadra and courts.

Aleem Khan said there was no doubt that the PML-N had won against him through rigging rather than the power of votes. He said the PTI would not sit silent, until it would expose the voter lists’ fraud jointly planned by the PML-N, the ECP and Nadra. He said he was sure that the rulers would once again be exposed.

Mr Sarwar said he had decided to raise the PTI’s voice against the ruling party’s new technique of rigging and could even approach the European Union and United Nations. He said the PTI had immediately after the Oct 11 by-election written a letter to the ECP demanding the certified copies of voter lists meant for the 2013 general elections and 2015 Lahore by-election but the commission had yet to respond.

“The PTI would even go to the extent of lodging a complaint for the registration of an FIR against the ECP,” he added.

MPA Mian Aslam Iqbal claimed that in just one union council 216 of NA-122, as many as 154 votes were shifted and 174 votes registered. He also alleged that the returning officer had not provided complete voter lists to the candidates.

MPA Shoaib Siddiqui said that in PP-147 alone, some 8,000 to 10,000 PTI votes were removed and evidence in this regard had been collected.

Meanwhile, addressing a public gathering as part of local government election campaign, the PTI Punjab organiser said the ECP had become a “B Team” of the PML-N for the upcoming polls. He said the commission was providing incomplete voter lists to the PTI candidates. He warned the ECP against conniving with the PML-N and asserted that any move to rig the local government elections would result in the “political death” of the ruling party.

“Chief Election Commissioner retired Justice Sardar Raza Khan should take notice,” he demanded.

Published in Dawn, October 19th , 2015

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