KARACHI, July 13: Slamming the regime for alleged pre-poll massive rigging in the upcoming local government elections, the Pakistan Peoples Party on Wednesday announced launching a website to expose what it called the “fraud” of the government in the upcoming elections on a daily basis. The website would provide every detail of the government’s attempts to allegedly manipulate elections, said the PPP monitoring committee’s chief former Senator Taj Haider at a news conference which was also addressed by Mr Nisar Khuhro, MNAs Sherry Rehman and Dr Fahmida Mirza, who is also the provincial information secretary. Additioal information secretary Waqar Mehdi and chief of the Karachi chapter Rashid Rabbani were also present.

Mr Taj Haider condemned the arrest of PPP leaders Khadim Hussain Chhachhar and Qambar Solangi in Dadu district on Tuesday.

Mr Haider said that they were arrested for refusing to join the PML or supporting its candidates in the local bodies’ elections.

Mr Haider said that arrests were part of the pre-election rigging campaign launched with the arrest of Awam Dost Nazim Mohan Lal Meghwar from Chief Minister Arbab Ghulam Rahim’s home district Tharparker, who was still being tortured at Central Jail, Hyderabad and being held in solitary confinement without allowing a meeting with relatives or lawyers.

Taj Haider said the arrest of the PPP leaders from Dadu or elsewhere in Sindh cannot deter from giving a tough time and defeat the ruling party candidates all over Sindh.

He asked the Chief Election Commissioner to take suo motu notice of the arrests and detention of the supporters of the PPP who are being deprived of a level-playing field in the local bodies’ elections.

Taj Haider also demanded the Election Commission to reverse the transfers and postings of hundreds of police officials in Sindh and stop the Sindh government from playing a game of hide and seek with ECP by suspending the senior police officers and replacing them with juniors to get the required results of the local bodies’ elections.

He also announced that in addition to the monitoring committee, the party had constituted information cell, foreign liaison committee, legal aid committee besides the website “dhandli.com” which would become operational on Thursday.

Leader of the Opposition in Sindh Assembly Nisar Khuhro described the upcoming LG elections a “farce” as governor, chief minister and other coalition partners were openly flouting rules. He pointed out that despite the fact that LG elections were party-less, but when alliance is formed between the PML and the MQM, the provincial governor takes part in that.

He alleged that Federal Minister Liaquat Ali Jatoi had himself led raiding parties in Mehar and Khairpur Nathan Shah Tehsils of Dadu to threaten PPP supporters against contesting the local bodies’ elections.

Nisar Khuhro said Sindh was facing blatant form of pre-election rigging and writ of the Election Commission was invisible. He regretted that the EC was not taking notice of the chief minister’s alleged “manipulation”.

He urged the ECP to take serious notice of the pre-election rigging being committed allegedly by the military regime and the test-tube politicians riding on its bandwagon.

He also recalled the alleged police excesses against the PPP supporters near Nooriabad and other parts and refusal of the jail authorities to release of Guddu Bihari from prison, despite court orders.

They urged the Election Commission to take notice of the violation of electoral laws and urged the superior court to take suo motu notice of contempt of its orders.

The PPP leader alleged that the chief minister and other functionaries had made a mockery of democracy. 

He appealed to the superior courts to take notice of the happenings in Tharparker desert and establish a judicial commission to probe into the Bhada Sandha incident.

MNA Sherry Rehman and Dr Fahmida Mirza also expressed similar views and gave details of individual cases of transfers and postings in violations of the election commission rules.

PPP’s demo: Activists of the Pakistan Peoples Party on Wednesday staged a unique anti-government protest when they ate grass and displayed stale bread outside the Karachi Press Club to express their anger over mounting poverty and unemployment in the country.

It was organized by the PPP Karachi division’s cultural wing. PPP MNAs Ms Sherry Rehman and Dr Fahmida Mirza also joined the protestors and hung stale bread around their necks to condemn the government policies of price hike and increasing unemployment.

The protesters, who were led by the PPP Cultural Wing’s President, Suleman Selia, and Dr Sarfraz Rajar, also included school children, who were carrying banners inscribed with slogans, ‘aunty Benazir come soon’, and ‘please get my papa his job back’.

The protestors chanted anti-government slogans and carried placards inscribed with slogans against Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz’s policies and the PPP’s resolve to bring Ms Bhutto back and emancipate the judiciary from the shackles of dictators.