ISLAMABAD: The Pakis­tan Peoples Party claimed on Sunday that the postponement of election on a National Assembly seat in Rawalpindi was meant to provide relief to one party as otherwise the PPP was in a winning position.

“A number of local leaders of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) had already announced their support for the PPP and we were sure that we would win the election from NA-60. Now we have been left with no other option but to move court against the decision,” PPP secretary general Nayyar Hussain Bukhari said while speaking at a news conference.

The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has postponed polling for the NA-60 constituency following the disqualification of PML-N candidate Hanif Abbasi by the Control of Narcotics Substances Court of Rawal­pindi in a case relating to misuse of controlled chemical ephedrine on Saturday.

The ECP said that preparations for the general elections were in their final stages and ballot papers for the constituency had already been printed with Mr Abbasi’s election symbol on them. Now polling in NA-60 would be held along with other constituencies where elections had been postponed, it added.

Mr Bukhari said there was no such precedent in the country’s history that election was postponed because of disqualification of a candidate.

“Because of this decision [postponement] the people of the constituency have been deprived of their right to vote. We condemn the decision,” he said.

PPP’s candidate for NA-60 Mukhtar Abbas claimed that he was in a position to win the election as a number of supporters of the PML-N had announced their support for him. “We condemn the postponement of election as relief has been provided to the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf,” he said.

Published in Dawn, July 23rd, 2018