ISLAMABAD, Aug 18: Jamaat-i-Islami on Thursday expressed its regret at the Tuesday’s polls related violence in Rawalpindi and said the incident was being exploited to hijack its successful campaign.

Speaking at a press conference here, Jamaat leaders Mian Aslam and Hanif Abbassi, both members of the National Assembly, rejected the impression that Jamaat was responsible for introducing politics of violence in Rawalpindi.

“Everyone knows, and it is on record, who resorted to violence against political opponents and patronised the gambling dens,” said Mr Abbassi, who has been booked in connection with Tuesday’s firing incident under Anti-Terrorism Act.

He rejected the impression that Jamaat and Shabab-i-Milli workers were bullying the voters leading to heightening of polarisation in the city. “People cannot be intimidated by such tactics,” he replied to a question.

Narrating the background of the incident, Mr Abbassi said tensions had been prevailing for almost four days prior to the incident. Tensions, he said, started with the pasting of stickers and prior to the incident the two parties had got together for reconciliation. However, provocative and insulting statements of the Lal Haveli delegation at the talks led to the hostility.

He didn’t clarify as to who started the firing. Nevertheless, he demanded that an impartial probe should be conducted to fix the responsibility. He tried to establish his alibi saying he was at his political secretariat at the time of the incident.

He swore that he was neither involved in the incident nor did he abet. “I never visited UC-43 during this LB polls campaign,” he added.

Regarding his role, he said, his nomination in the FIR was planned by the leaders of the ruling PML to upset the successful campaign of MMA candidates in the district. The motive behind the whole episode, he said, was to influence the district and tehsil elections.

Asked about the impact of this incident on the prospects of MMA, Mr Abbassi said a large number of Jamaat activists had been picked up from different parts of the city to hijack the Jamaat campaign.

The most affected union council, the MNA said, was UC-26, where the former nazim Raza Shah, a Jamaat loyalist, was seeking re-election although this union council was in no way related to the UC-43 incident.