KARACHI: A day after rejecting the results of the Feb 8 elections, the Grand Democratic Alliance (GDA) demanded re-polling and urged the chief justice of Pakistan to take suo motu action against ‘fraudulent’ polls.

Addressing a press conference along with other leaders, GDA secretary general Dr Safdar Abbasi said that the Election Commission of Pakistan had completely failed to hold free, fair and transparent elections and demanded that elections should be declared annulled and held again.

He said that the voice of GDA chief, Pir Pagara, was the voice of Sindh, and a large number of people of the province would participate in a protest sit-in at Jamshoro Bypass in Hyderabad on Feb 16.

Flanked by Liaquat Ali Jatoi, Sardar Abdul Rahim, Husnain Mirza and Nand Kumar Gokalani, Dr Abbasi urged the Chief Justice of Pakistan to take suo motu action against the ‘fraudulent’ elections, declare the results null and void and order re-elections.

JI to join alliance’s protest demo in Hyderabad on Friday

He said that the GDA leaders, workers and supporters were being implicated in false cases of terrorism, asking the caretaker provincial government to act sensibly.

He said that PPP was a ‘rejected’ party in the province and getting so many votes by it in the elections was a big question mark.

Dr Abbasi said that Sindh was heading towards anarchy as all major political parties, including the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf, Jammat-i-Islami and JUI-F, had rejected the ‘fraudulent’ elections.

He said that there could never be negotiations with the PPP which had ‘ruined’ the province.

Responding to a question, the GDA leader said that two GDA MPAs would not take the oath of assembly as they would take the oath ‘to the people’ in a historic protest sit-in in front of the Sindh Assembly.

Replying to another question, the GDA secretary general said that Pir Sahib Pagara was pressurised by certain quarters to accept the results of the elections.

JI accepts GDA invitation to join protest

Later in the evening, a GDA delegation comprising Dr Abbasi and Sardar Rahim visited the Idara Noor-i-Haq headquarters of the JI and invited its leadership to join their Feb 16 protests in Hyderabad.

City chief of JI Hafiz Naeemur Rehman accepted the invitation and vowed to launch a joint struggle against rigging in the Feb 8 elections.

Published in Dawn, February 14th, 2024