Tarar to reveal Oct ’99 story

Published October 21, 2002

LAHORE, Oct 20: Former president Rafiq Tarar says the government has “stolen the Oct 10 show by increasing the turnout from 25-30 per cent to 45-50 per cent through bogus means.”

Speaking at a reception held here on Saturday night for the PML-N and MMA MPs elected from Lahore, he said evidence was being collected to prove the vote fraud.

Jamaat-i-Islami naib amir Liaquat Baloch, Punjab PML-N chief Zulfikar Khosa, secretary general Khwaja Saad Rafiq, JI deputy secretary-general Farid Piracha and others were also present.

Mr Tarar said he would soon disclose the story about how and why the army chief overthrew the democratically elected government in October 1999.

Liaquat Baloch said the Provisional Constitutional Order (PCO) and the Legal Framework Order were in conflict with constitution and the MMA would reject them.

He said the army as an institution had to decide whether it would accept the public mandate or go with the personal dictatorship.

He said Gen Pervez Musharraf had earned nothing but disrepute through the April 30 referendum, while pro-Musharraf elements were rejected by the masses on Oct 10.

He said the MMA, if allowed to form government in the centre, would introduce such policies that could rid the country of the IMF and World Bank slavery.

Zulfikar Khosa said the government had tampered with the election results in constituencies from where PML-N candidates were in the run.

— Staff Reporter

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