The Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) expressed concerns on Saturday regarding the Election Commission of Pakistan’s (ECP) perceived delays in granting the party its election symbol, the ‘bat.’
The party is urging swift action from the electoral body to prevent further complications, emphasizing that all required documents were already submitted after conducting intra-party polls.
In an official statement, a PTI spokesperson underscored the urgency of the matter, urging the Lahore High Court (LHC) to expedite the hearing of Barrister Ali Zafar’s petition to prevent what they termed the “tragic death of democracy.”
Zafar’s petition challenges the ECP’s Nov 23 order, which nullified PTI’s intra-party polls from June last year, providing a 20-day window for a fresh election to retain its electoral symbol. The party conducted the polls on Dec 2, electing Barrister Gohar Khan as its new chairman.
The spokesperson alleged that the PTI was facing severe state repression and political engineering, accusing the government of attempting historical electoral fraud in the upcoming general election. He claimed that the popular political party, with the support of over three-fourths of eligible voters, was being targeted through a conspiracy and a “technical knockout.”
The official criticized the current governments in Pakistan as unconstitutional and undemocratic, asserting their primary goal was undermining Imran Khan’s public mandate. Referring to incidents on May 9, he claimed a coordinated effort to dismantle PTI and suppress its supporters, including the detention of Imran Khan and other party members.
Accusations were also directed at the ECP and its leadership for discriminatory practices aimed at erasing PTI’s political presence. The spokesperson argued that such actions were desperate attempts by anti-democratic forces to exclude the party from politics.
The official condemned the ECP’s decision to invalidate PTI’s intra-party elections and the demand for a re-election within 20 days. He highlighted the unprecedented move by Imran Khan to step down for the sake of democracy, nominating a capable and loyal party worker instead of a family member.
Expressing dismay at the ECP’s failure to issue the party’s election symbol after completing intra-party elections, the spokesperson deemed it a severe form of pre-poll rigging, undermining the country’s Constitution, democracy, transparent elections, and the political identity of millions of Pakistanis. PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Khan called on the ECP to promptly issue the party’s poll certificate, emphasizing that the election symbol signifies the participation of all political parties in the democratic process.
