LAHORE: The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) has requested the Supreme Court to restore local bodies representatives in Punjab as 52 per cent population of the country is deprived of representation.

Talking to reporters after presiding over the party’s women wing meeting here on Saturday, PML-N Secretary General Ahsan Iqbal said the Imran Khan government had targeted the PML-N and deprived Punjab of local bodies representation.

“The PTI government did so to take revenge from the people of Punjab for voting for PML-N. We request the SC and high court to take notice of suspension of the local bodies and order its restoration,” Mr Iqbal said.

In May this year, some 58,000 local bodies representatives in Punjab were sent packing after the governor signed the Punjab Local Government Bill 2019. Commissioners and deputy commissioners have been posted as administrators.

Ahsan Iqbal said the ‘credit’ for depriving 52 per cent population of Pakistan of local representatives went to the PTI government.

He said there had been an increase in crime rate in Punjab and there was no government in the province. He said the PML-N was pro-democratic and it would continue fighting dictatorial mindset.

“Selected Prime Minister Imran Khan cannot hide his incompetence by arresting the PML-N leadership. Nawaz Sharif, Maryam Nawaz, Hamza Shahbaz, Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, Rana Sanaullah, Khwaja brothers and other incarcerated leaders of PML-N are fighting for democracy. No corruption charges have been proved against them,”

Mr Iqbal asked Imran to tell the people what commitments he made with US President Donald Trump on the Kashmir issue during his visit to the US. He said Modi was prime minister during the last five years but he could not dare scrap the special status of India-held Kashmir despite the PTI’s rant that he was friend of Nawaz Sharif.

“In fact Imran Khan has sold Kashmir to India. Khan had said he wanted Modi to return to power,” he said.

Published in Dawn, August 25th, 2019