PESHAWAR, May 13: At least 17 candidates, including independents and those fielded by political parties in Bara tehsil of Khyber Agency, on Monday alleged rigging in the NA-46, Fata constituency and demanded re-election.
In the day, three news conferences were held at Peshawar Press Club, where speakers produced torn ballot papers from NA-46 and alleged that their opponents were involved in violence against their supporters, firing in the air and smashing of ballot boxes.At one press conference, 13 candidates led by Munsif Khan alleged that the political administration of Khyber Agency, officials of Election Commission of Pakistan and local education department staff played very negative role in the May 11 electoral process and thus, causing clashes among workers.
Expressing dissatisfaction over the conduct of the local administration, he said ECP should announce re-election in the constituency with polling stations in Peshawar under the supervision of security forces to ensure impartiality, fairness and transparency of the entire exercise.
Mr Munsif, who contested elections independently, was accompanied by Sohail Khan of PML-N, Shamsuddin of JUI-F, Shah Faisal Afridi of JI, Ajab Khan of Qaumi Watan Party along with independent aspirants Malik Waris Khan Afridi, Saeedullah Hassan, Haji Khan Afridi, Saeed Karam Shah, Imran Afridi, Awal Gul Afridi, Ayub Afridi, Captain (r) Afridi, Qadar Khan Afridi and Nasir Khan Afridi.
Recalling the polling day scene, he said arrangements for polling were unsatisfactory as no sufficient facilities were provided at most polling stations designated for both men and women and that was why polling began two hours after scheduled time.He said in the constituency, around 85 per cent voters’ names were missing from electoral lists and even names of many candidates, including Shah Faisal Afridi and Sohail Khan, were not present on the lists showing mala fide intent on part of the relevant authorities.
Mr Munsif said candidates were not given electoral lists on time and the lists given on May 9 were flawed.
He said free, fair and transparent elections could not be possible in presence of the current political administration.
The candidate said Khasadar personnel didn’t allow voters them to drive their vehicles, where the worst affected were the aged and ailing people, who could not walk for many kilometers to cast vote, while some workers of political parties had sealed off ballot boxes before their dispatch to the presiding officer.
He said only 500 votes were cast in Jalozai polling station out of the total 19,000 registered voters due to mismanagement and poor arrangements. He said around 187 votes were polled in Tirah polling station of the total 13,751 under the present situation.
Mr Munsif warned the elections results would not acceptable until make sufficient arrangements, while holding the process under impartial polling staffs and the army in NA-46.
At another news conference, PTI candidate Haji Iqbal Afridi showed at least 400 damaged ballot papers to media and said voters had stamped bat (PTI’s election symbol) but opponents destroyed ballot boxes and threw out ballot papers, while his workers collected them.
He demanded re-election in NA-46 and warned that in case ECP did not accept the demand, then his party would have the option to stage demonstrations and sit-ins outside the Governor House and EC offices.
Another candidate and former federal minister Hamidullah Jan Afridi told a news conference at PPC the same day that Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Governor Shaukatullah Khan supported his rival candidate, Haji Mohammad Shah, and that EC should announce re-election at polling stations, where ballot boxes were destroyed.
He urged ECP to conducted re-elections on the national assembly seat under the supervision of Pakistan-Army, saying polling stations should be set up in Peshawar to avoid any untoward incident.