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| August 29, 2005 | Monday | Rajab 23, 1426 |
Niamat grilled for low-key reaction to ‘rigging’
LAHORE, Aug 28: Jamaat-i-Islami high-ups are not happy over the mild reaction shown by the Karachi unit of the party to the alleged rigging by the MQM in the local polls on Aug 18.
Jamaat Amir Qazi Husain Ahmad has sought explanation from former Karachi nazim Niamatullah Khan, who was leading the party’s election campaign in the port city, sources say.
Mr Khan was told that party’s reaction over the rigging was too mild and improper, they added.
The sources said Mr Khan informed Qazi Husain that they had adopted the best strategy keeping in view the ground realities there.
However, the explanation failed to satisfy the JI’s central leadership, they added.
PRESS CONFERENCE: Lahore Jamaat officials allege that polling process for the district government system has concluded, but rigging is still continuing.
Speaking at a press conference here on Sunday, city amir Hafiz Salman Butt and secretary-general Amirul Azeem claimed that their 30 candidates for nazims and 16 for naib-nazims were in the leading position but the number had been reduced to 10 and eight, respectively, through “new rigging techniques.”
They further alleged that overall 700 results were changed in the city as subordinates of returning officers “earned” Rs50,000 to Rs100,000 for each change.
The Jamaat received results from seven polling stations prepared in same hand-writing, they claimed, adding that there were complaints from several polling stations that a number of ballots were missing from each ballot book used there.
At least 35 per cent results from polling stations were delivered to the returning officers concerned after 24-hour delay, they said.
Alleging that not a single returning officer had yet done official counting of results, they demanded that the district returning officer should issue the direction that the task be accomplished immediately.
They claimed that PML-N’s Haji Imdad Husain joined the ruling PML after the government ensured his group’s victory in union council 32.
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