ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) lawmakers Thursday staged a peaceful protest outside the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) and demanded the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Sikandar Sultan Raja and members of the ECP.
The PTI lawmakers including Asad Umar, Pervez Khattak, Shibli Faraz, Fawad Chaudhry, Faisal Javed Khan, Azam Swati, Omar Ayub, and Kanwal Shauzab were among the protesters. Sheikh Rasheed of Awami Muslim League (AML) as well as some supporters of the PTI gathered outside Parliament House and then marched toward the ECP carrying placards “Imported Hukoomat Namanzoor,” “CEC Namanzoor,” “biased chief election commissioner unacceptable”, “ECP, abettors of PML-N, PPP” and “CEC should tender resignation”.
The PTI leaders gathered at the main gate of the ECP which was closed and they were not allowed to enter the ECP. A small of group of lawyers of the PTI also participated in the protest.
PTI leader Asad Umar handed over a memorandum to an ECP official.
No protest to be allowed in front of ECP: govt
Talking to the media, Umar said that the ECP is no longer working as a state body but as a subsidiary of the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM). The ECP has given seven verdicts against the PTI which were rejected by different courts. He urged the CEC and its members to resign. Two provincial assemblies have passed resolutions against the ECP and have cited a lack of confidence in the body, he said.
A heavy contingent of police and Rangers was deployed in and around the ECP building to avert any incidents.
The memorandum was submitted by the PTI lawmakers against Raja for playing an “unconstitutional, undemocratic, and biased” role as the CEC. The memorandum says that the PTI was the largest political party in Pakistan according to the votes it had received in the general and by-elections. “Under the leadership of CEC Raja, the ECP has adopted a biased attitude against the PTI for the past eight years, which is evident from its decisions.”
It said that the ECP’s August 2 verdict in PTI’s prohibited funding case was against the law and aimed at taking “revenge” from the party. “From the investigation to its verdict, the case is surrounded by severe doubts,” the memorandum stated, adding that Imran Khan had also, on multiple occasions, expressed his reservations with the ECP and the CEC.
It alleged that the verdict was influenced by the CEC’s meeting with the coalition parties last week. And the PTI, it continued, through no-confidence resolutions in the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab assemblies had expressed its loss of trust in the electoral body.
“Hence, for a better future, it is important that all the existing officials of the ECP submit their resignations,” the PTI demanded, adding that an unbiased commission could only end the political instability in the country. After submitting the memorandum, the PTI lawmakers dispersed peacefully.
The law enforcement agencies sealed off the Red Zone through shipping containers and barbed wires to stop the possible entry of the PTI workers into the Red Zone. The PTI leadership earlier called its workers to gather outside the ECP for staging a protest against the CEC. On Thursday, they asked the administration to allow them to stage a protest at Nadra Chowk but they were not permitted to record their protest. Later, the PTI leaders announced that they will stage a peaceful protest at F-9 Park.
The administration sealed off the Red Zone through shipping containers and barbed wires which house the Parliament House, Prime Minister’s House, the Supreme Court, Diplomatic Enclave, Pak Secretariat, and other buildings except for the lone entry/exit point on the Margalla Road.
A heavy contingent of police, anti-riot force, and Rangers was deployed in and outside of the Red Zone. The city police also put security across the city. Motorists and people face difficulties owing to the blockade. Margalla Road and different others witnessed severe traffic jams and caused inconvenience to public transport, pedestrians, and motorists.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2022
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