The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Monday wrote a letter to National Database Registration Authority (Nadra) chairman Usman Yousaf Mobin over an alleged leak in details of voters for general election 2018. In its letter, the ECP stated that Nadra officials shared details of voters with "unrelated persons". Unrelated persons had access to the data regarding voters before it reached ECP, the letter stated.
It further said that Nadra has violated its agreement with ECP regarding the confidentiality of data. Nadra was not permitted to share data with anyone as per our agreement, it asserted. The ECP demanded that the Nadra chairman conducts an inquiry against those involved in the alleged data leak. A day earlier, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chairman Imran Khan had reportedly decided to send a petition against the Nadra chairman to the ECP seeking his removal.
The sources said the PTI had prepared the petition against Mobin to be sent to the ECP. They said that the petition alleged that Mobin was appointed by the outgoing Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) government and that the Nadra chief reportedly aided the party by providing it valuable data. Mobin was reappointed as Nadra chairman for a period of three years in February this year after his earlier tenure ended.
On Sunday, a Nadra spokesperson termed the allegations baseless and malicious. According to a statement by the authority, Nadra has a limited scope with regards to the conduct of elections and is assisting the ECP in a technical role. Moreover, Nadra clarified that it has not provided any kind of data to any political party.