KARACHI, Sept 1: Former Sindh assembly member and Sindh chief of the All Pakistan Minorities Alliance (APMA), Saleem Khursheed Khokhar, has questioned the government’s impartiality in the coming elections.

Speaking at a press conference on Sunday, he said the elections would not be transparent as the government was supporting a particular alliance.

He said that the APMA had also given a presentation to the European Observers Team for Elections on the coming elections and expressed their concerns over the steps being taken by the government.

He said some of those recommendations were: the newly presented constitutional package be taken back, all political prisoners, including Asif Zardari, be released and everybody, including Benazir Bhutto, be allowed to contest the polls; votes be counted in the presence of candidates or their agents, counting of votes be done on the British pattern, government functionaries, including governors and minister, be asked to remain impartial.

He alleged that a cabinet member had interests in the company which had been given the contract of computerized counting of votes. He said that the APMA had genuine concerns and apprehensions and if these were not addressed, the whole exercise of elections would be doubtful, proving a great set back to democracy in the country.