ISLAMABAD: The PPP called on the Supreme Judicial Council on Tuesday to try members of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) for their alleged role in rigging the general elections of 2013.

“A reference, under Article 209 of the Constitution, should be initiated against the four ECP members and action taken so that their successors know they can be punished if they indulge in foul play,” PPP Senator Saeed Ghani said during a discussion in the Senate on the invocation of Article 245 in Islamabad.

The demand comes a day after Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) chief Imran Khan specifically accused the ECP member from Punjab, retired Justice Riaz Kiani, of playing a major role in rigging the polls in favour of the PML-N – an allegation denied by Justice Kiani.

Know more: PTI wants removal of all ECP members: Qureshi

The discussion on the floor of the house was overshadowed by various political parties offering advice to the government over the impending demonstrations in the capital on August 14. Nearly all the speakers called on the ruling party to allow marchers to come to Islamabad on Independence Day. Many of the speakers insisted that by creating hurdles, the government might worsen an already volatile situation.

Saeed Ghani also criticised the government’s handling of the situation, saying that it had made millions of people miserable just to stop a few thousand activists from the Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT).

“The government seems to believe that it was on its way out. It needs to come out of this fear and must allow marchers to come and stay (in the capital for as long as) they want. The system is not so weak that it can be done away with by a single march,” he remarked.

Referring to PML-N leaders’ statements about “a conspiracy against democracy”, he said the party that had authorised the use of force in the anti-encroachment operation outside PAT headquarters in Lahore’s Model Town was, in fact, an enemy of the government and democracy.

Former interior minister Rehman Malik of the PPP proposed the constitution of a parliamentary committee to investigate the rigging charges levelled by Imran Khan. “Whoever is found to be responsible should be brought to book and taught a lesson,” he remarked.

Calling Imran Khan “a leader”, Mr Malik called on the government to welcome him. But the senator criticised Dr Tahirul Qadri and asked him to define what he meant by ‘revolution’. He condemned Qadri’s statement which called on his supporters to ‘kill’ members of the Sharif family.

Senator Taj Haider also slammed the government for invoking Article 245, noting that those who came into power with the “funding from the agencies” and “with the help of terrorists” did not know the value of democracy.

He warned the government against adopting “a path of confrontation”, saying that the forces which had opted for a referendum under a dictator would strengthen the hands of some other dictator if the government continued its confrontational stance. He said the democratic system was under pressure and the government should join hands with pro-democracy forces to avert these attacks.

Awami National Party’s Afrasiab Khatak asked the government not to be unnerved and said that those who wanted a peaceful protest should not be stopped. He said that those who were trying to overthrow democratically-elected governments should also revisit their attitude.

He said there was no justification for a long march in the presence of a vibrant parliament, free media and independent judiciary. “It is nothing but an invitation to undemocratic forces,” he remarked.

Kulsoom Parveen of the BNP-A criticised the government for not accepting Imran Khan’s demand for verification of voters’ thumb impressions in four constituencies.

The minister of state for parliamentary affairs, winding up discussion, said that Article 245 had not been invoked to stop Imran Khan’s march, but rather to counter the threat that terrorists posed to the city.

The house will meet on Aug 18.

Published in Dawn, Aug 13th, 2014