KARACHI: After Jamaat-i-Islami, Grand Democratic Alliance, Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf and Tehreek Labbaik Pakistan, the Majlis Wahdat-i-Muslimeen (MWM) and Sindh United Party (SUP) have also rejected the results of the Feb 8 general elections.

The two parties alleged that the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) had failed to conduct transparent elections in the province.

In a statement, MWM-Sindh president Allama Baqir Abbas Zaidi said that the ECP and law enforcement agencies were nowhere to be seen when various polling staff, agents and voters were threatened and terrorised. “Cosmetic arrangements were made by the ECP and law enforcement agencies regarding the general elections,” he alleged.

He said that it seemed that the ‘political Taliban’ had already made a deal with certain quarters.

He added that the Pakistan Peoples Party and Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan had already announced the number of seats of the National Assembly and Sindh Assembly they secured much before the unofficial results of the election were announced.

Both parties say ECP failed to conduct transparent polls

Allama Zaidi said that the law enforcement agencies were completely absent at the polling stations which were considered to be very sensitive in the city. “Several complaints were also made regarding the videos of the election irregularities, but no notice was taken of these incidents by the ECP and the law enforcers,” he deplored.

He said that the people had rejected attempts to change the results after delay, which made the election doubtful.

The MWM provincial chief said that the number of independent candidates of the National Assembly was the highest, despite the fact that the results were rigged.

SUP terms election ‘fake, rigged’

The SUP, which is part of the Grand Democratic Alliance (GDA), on Saturday rejected results of the general election by terming them ‘fake, rigged and fraudulent’.

In a statement, SUP president Syed Zain Shah, who is also a central leader of the GDA, said that the fraudulent and fake elections were unacceptable to the people of the province.

He said that the ‘establishment’ should admit that it openly interfered in the elections for the benefit of the PPP in the province.

“The caretaker provincial government, the biased Election Commission and powerful institutions stole the mandate of Sindh by killing the democracy,” he added.

The SUP chief announced a strong protest against the ‘fraudulent’ election across the province. “Besides, we will also go to the election tribunals against rigging,” he added.

He said that the superior judiciary was responsible for appointment of deputy / assistant commissioners as returning officers instead of members of district judiciary.

Zain Shah said that election was rigged by shutting down the mobile services.

“This is the worst election held in the province,” he said.

Published in Dawn, February 11th, 2024