More candidates of different political parties including PPP, JUI-F and independent candidates continued rejecting local bodies' polls to mount pressure on the government and Election Commission for re-polling in their respective union councils. Wednesday more candidates flooded Peshawar Press Club (PPC) and addressed press conferences while some along with their supporters staged demos to press government and election commission for the acceptance of the demands.
All losing candidates from Union Council No 9, Sikandar Town has alleged massive rigging by polling staff and police in favour of PTI candidate in the local bodies' polls. A candidate of tri-party alliance for district council, Ghulam Mustafa, JUI-F candidate, Shahid Mehmood Zuberi and independent Masood Afridi alleged that the PTI candidates has forcibly elected themselves. They said that highhandedness exhibited by the PTI candidates and their supporters has no precedent in the electoral history. They alleged that their polling agents were not allowed to enter female polling stations established in Commerce College and Qadirabad while PTI deployed 9 polling agent even the polling agent of a retired candidate were also allowed.
They alleged that a sister of the PTI candidate along with polling agents were stamping ballot papers and they were not allowing their workers of other political parties and candidates to poll vote and in case of the success of someone to enter the polling station, they would use to snatch ballot paper and poll it in favour of PTI candidate.
Similarly, they alleged that none of their polling agent was allowed to witness the counting and were forcibly expelled and until now they are still awaiting the results. They said that all such rigging and irregularities were committed in broad day light, but even police and polling staff was not to accept our complaints and themselves continued to poll votes in favour of PTI candidates.
They said that the PTI chief was used to demand the resignation of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on alleged rigging. Therefore, they said today they are demanding of Imran Khan to seek resignation from Chief Minister Pervez Khattak and Provincial Minister Ziaullah Afridi. They rejected the results of the Union Council No 9, Sikandar Town and demanded re-polling under the supervision of Pakistan army. Similarly, a PML-N candidate for tehsil council from Union Council Zeda, district Swabi, Adnan Yousafzai also alleged organized rigging by PTI in their union council. He said that presiding officer and other polling staffs was allowing only PTI supporters to cast votes.
He said that they had collected the proofs of rigging, which include damaged and burnt ballot papers. Furthermore, he said that his more than 250 votes were rejected without any justification. The PML-N candidate demanded the declaration of election in their union council as null and void and re-polling under the supervision of Pakistan army. Meanwhile, independent candidates from Union Council Deha Bahadar staged a protest demonstration against the alleged rigging of PTI and Jamaat-i-Islami candidates and demanded re-polling in their area. The candidates including independents, ANP and others castigated PTI for committing rigging in local bodies' polls. They also accused returning officers, polling staff and police for polling fake votes in favour of PTI candidates.
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