ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) on Friday rejected the election for chairman Senate in which government’s candidate Sadiq Sanjrani was declared as the winner and decided to challenge the results in a court, besides hinting at brining a no-confidence motion against the newly-elected chairman.
As soon as the results of the elections were announced PDM leaders started challenging the results.
Speaking at a news conference along with PDM candidate and former premier Yousaf Raza Gilani, PPP chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said he had spoken with Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) vice president Maryam Nawaz while PPP co-chairman Asif Zardari was in contact with the JUI-F chief and PDM president Maulana Fazlur Rehman over the election of Senate chairmanship which he claimed was won by Gilani but was “stolen”.
He said it was the consensus decision of the PDM that the results of the elections would be challenged in high court while consultation were under way whether or not to bring a no-confidence motion against Sanjrani in case ‘justice is not served in the court’.
“The seven votes have been rejected illegitimately and we hope that the court will give its ruling in our favour, as we believe that we have won this election, but the mandate has been stolen,” he maintained, terming it a “PDM’s victory”.
He also termed presiding officer Syed Muzaffar Hussain Shah “biased”, saying “because the presiding officer belongs to an allied party [Functional League] of the PTI, that’s why he made a biased decision and declared the seven votes of Gilani as rejected,” Bilawal said, adding that through a “biased” decision Sanjrani was once again “imposed” on the Senate.
On the question of neutrality of institutions, he said that the PDM is struggling towards this end that every institution plays its role and within the ambit of the Constitution.
“If you ask me whether all the institutions are playing their constitutional role my answer will be ‘no’. But it’s a continued struggle that we are waging, as no one will hand neutrality in a plate,” he added.
“If any conspiracy was hatched, that was by presiding officer and the [PTI’s] allied party [Functional League],” Bilawal said.
Bilawal also referred to decision by the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), saying that in an earlier case the electoral body has made it clear that the intention of the voters should be taken into account before a decision is taken on the validity or rejection is taken.
“We’ve proved both in National Assembly and Senate, the government on its way out,” Bilawal claimed.
Speaking on the occasion, Gilani said that during the process of the vote count, the opposition raised objection over the presiding officer’s decision with regard to rejection of seven votes.
“But our objections were overruled, as the presiding offer was not neutral,” he said.
He thanked PPP leadership, PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif and JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman and other leaders of the parties in PDM for showing confidence in him by fielding him as the consensus candidate.
Earlier, speaking at a news conference separately outside Parliament House, PDM leaders including Raja Pervez Ashraf, Ahsan Iqbal and Qamar Zaman Kaira rejected the election of Sanjrani as chairman Senate and vowed to challenge the result in court.
PPP leader Raja Pervez Ashraf claimed Gilani had won the election and termed it “plunder” over the votes and a “joke” with democracy.
He alleged that those who had talked about the sanctity and importance of the vote had instead planted cameras which were recovered from polling booths earlier in the day, adding that the installation of those ‘hidden’ cameras was aimed at undermining the sanctity of polling process. PML-N’s Ahsan Iqbal said the opposition would surely move the court.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2021