DADU: Sindh United Party chairman Syed Jalal Mehmood Shah led a protest at Lal Bag near Indus Highway in Sehwan town on Sunday against an incident in which an assistant returning officer and his colleagues were caught red-handed a day ago stamping postal ballot papers in favour of PPP candidates for PS-80 and NA-233.

Mr Shah who is also a candidate for PS-80 and NA-233 (Kotri-Sehwan) demanded the chief election commissioner should cancel all the postal ballot papers which were stamped by ARO Qurban Memon and five others in favour of PPP candidate for PS-80 former chief minister Syed Murad Ali Shah, and the party‘s contestant for NA-233 Sikandar Ali Rahpoto late on Saturday evening.

Mr Shah said that ARO Qurban Memon who was Sehwan taluka education officer and five education department officials identified as Mohammad Saleh Memon, Abid Ali Sainch, Mohammad Aslam, Ghulam Mustafa Solangi, Abdul Aziz Rahpoto were caught by local people when they were stamping the ballot papers of government employees in the office of the taluka education officer.

He said that at least 2500 ballot papers were stamped in the worst such example of pre-poll rigging. The case against them was lodged on behalf of state and they were arrested after the chief election commissioner took notice of the incident but the stamped ballot papers had not been cancelled yet.

Meanwhile, Jamshoro deputy commissioner Shazia Kazi and SSP Basir Ahmed Birohi had also started investigation into the incident on the directives of caretaker Sindh chief minister Fazur Rehman.

PPP organises big motor rally

UMERKOT: Pakistan People’s Party Umerkot chapter organised a big motor rally of 3,000 vehicles and motorcycles which started from Umerkot and passed through Samaro, Kunri, Pithoro and other towns on Sunday.

The motor rally was led by Syed Ali Mardan Shah, candidate for PS-52, Syed Sardar Shah (PS-51), Nawab Taimur Talpur (PS-53) and Nawab Yousuf Talpur (NA-220).

The leaders admitted in their speeches before the onset of the rally that they could not please all voters but they did not harass them either while their opponents were involved in cattle theft, robberies, encroachments, torture and murders of poor people.

Published in Dawn, July 23rd, 2018