GUJRAT: PML-Q President Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain has said that apprehensions of Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) Secretary Babar Yaqoob Fateh regarding some forces attempting to block the way to peaceful elections in Pakistan are proving right.

Mr Fateh was a senior bureaucrat, so the caretaker government should accord due importance to his statements before a Senate standing committee and take immediate and effective steps for foiling a conspiracy, if any, so that elections were held in a peaceful atmosphere, he added.

Mr Shujaat said that it was the duty of the caretaker government to provide protection to all candidates, their supporters and voters. In a statement issued here on Monday, he claimed that over the past few days Pakistan’s enemies had unleashed terrorism here and there were not enough words to condemn the killing of around 200 people, including Siraj Raisani and Haroon Bilour.

He said the ECP’s job was not only to monitor the elections and that of the caretaker government to ensure holding of the polls, but also to provide a conducive, peaceful atmosphere during electoral campaigns and polling.

The PML-Q chief further said Raisani was a “great and bold torchbearer of national solidarity” and that the “enemies of Pakistan” could not tolerate his statements on Pakistan Day, which was why he was targeted. He said such incidents should be prevented.

He further said while it was the duty of the caretaker government to maintain law and order, the masses should also ensure that on July 25 they voted over and above party differences for candidates who not only believed in security, solidarity and national supremacy, but also vowed to uphold these factors.

Published in Dawn, July 17th, 2018