PESHAWAR/ISLAMABAD: Joint opposition parties in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP)—Awami National Party (ANP), JUI-F and PPP— on Saturday announced rallies and shutter-down strikes across the province beginning June 10 against alleged rigging in the recently-held local government polls.

The announcement came after a consultative meeting between the three opposition parties in Peshawar, which was presided by ANP’s Mian Iftikhar Hussain.

Following the meeting, Mian Iftikhar told media personnel that local government elections in KP were not acceptable to opposition parties since “massive rigging had taken place.”

He reiterated his party chief’s sentiment, asking the PTI-led provincial government to resign immediately on ethical grounds. “If the government does not resign we will continue our protest indefinitely,” he said.

Also read: ANP leader demands KP government's resignation.

The ANP leader said the three-party alliance will also contact other political parties in the province and invite them to join the protest, adding that the movement will continue till the provincial government tenders its resignation.

Meanwhile, a group of workers from opposition parties in KP protested in Islamabad against alleged rigging during local body elections held in the province earlier in the week. Workers gathered outside an election commission office in Islamabad to record their protest and later turned towards PTI chief Imran Khan’s residence in Bani Gala, where a heavy contingent of police has been deployed to ward of any untoward incident.

A couple of days ago KP Chief Minister Pervez Khattak, categorically rejecting allegations of massive rigging by the ruling PTI in the recently concluded local government polls in KP, had offered to form a judicial commission or an investigating team to probe allegations.

Addressing a press conference in Peshawar along with leaders of coalition parties — Jamaat-i-Islami and Awami Jamhuri Ittehad— Khattak had vowed to investigate all allegations in a transparent manner.

Explore: KP govt ready to investigate local government polls, says Khattak.