KARACHI: The Jamaat-i-Islami on Satur­day levelled allegation of post-poll rigging against the ruling Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) to change the results of Jan 15 local bodies’ elections through government machinery and human resource, demanding the Election Com­mission of Pakistan to take notice of ‘fascism and mocking of the electoral process’.

Addressing a press conference at the party headquarters Idara Noor-i-Haq, JI Karachi chief Hafiz Naeem ur Rehman said that the PPP government in Sindh has hit a new low in the country’s political history by demonstrating naked fascism and mocking the electoral process as well as mandate of Karachiites.

“The returning officer and his deputy in the recounting process adop­ted the corrupt practices in the Union Council-4 of Gulshan-i-Hadeed,” he said.

“The DRO and the RO expressed more loyalty to the PPP at the cost of showing disloyalty to the state and their oath. The recounting was carried out despite the fact that seals of envelopes were found broken and the ballot bags were found already torn.”

In addition, he said, the officers failed to provide the data of remaining ballot papers. The said UC, he added, was won by the JI by 165 votes, but in the recount the PPP was declared winner with a fake margin of 53 votes as only those votes were rejected which had been casted in the favor of the JI.

“Our party JI has been issu­ing heads-ups to the Ele­c­tion Commission abo­u­t the post-poll rigging in the name of recounting, but unfortunately it failed to take notice of the corrupt practice,” said Hafiz Naeem.

“We would go for a decisive sit-in protest against the post-poll rigging and the ambush on the mandate of Karachiites. We would protect the mandate of people of Karachi and would use all legal and democratic forums to raise our voice.”

Published in Dawn, March 5th, 2023