Former foreign minister and the Pakistan Muslim League-Q candidate for NA-140 (Kasur) Khurshid Mahmud Kasuri on Monday said Pakistan was passing through a crucial period and a national government was inevitable to ensure peace and prosperity in the country.
"If Western countries can establish national governments, why not Pakistan?" Kasuri told reporters at a news conference at his home. He said Pakistan had taken big strides in various fields because of viable policies of the former government, adding that the country could never progress while it was having strained relations with its neighbours.
He said some political parties fearing defeat were crying foul while the polls were still almost a fortnight away. He ruled out the possibility of rigging in the general elections by any quarter, saying the elections would be free and fair. He said rigging was out of the question in the presence of an independent media and international observers monitoring the entire election process in the country.
He claimed to have the majority support in the NA-140, saying no significant development work had been done in the area over the past 55 years, while in his tenure he executed projects at a cost of Rs 7 billion. Markazi Jamiat Ahl-e-Hadith Secretary general Allama Syed Ziaullah Shah Bokhari supported Kasuri.