ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has released a white paper alleging rigging in the February 8 general elections and has demanded the establishment of a judicial commission to investigate the “seizure of the 180 seats.”
During a press conference in Islamabad on Thursday, PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar stated, “We secured the 180 seats in the [February 8] elections. Our seats were reassigned to other parties through Form 47.”
Expressing frustration, Barrister Gohar mentioned that although they had filed a petition in the Supreme Court regarding the alleged rigging, it has yet to be scheduled for a hearing.
“We are presenting a 300-page white paper to inform the public about how their mandate was compromised,” Barrister Gohar added.
In the February 8 elections, independent candidates supported by PTI won the highest number of National Assembly seats, followed by the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP). However, despite this, a coalition government was formed by the PML-N with support from other parties, including the PPP, and subsequently became the largest party in the lower house of parliament after the allocation of reserved seats.
The PTI lost its claim to the reserved seats as its members contested the elections independently. Barrister Gohar referenced the Election Commission of Pakistan’s (ECP) decision to invalidate the party’s intra-party polls, which led the PTI to contest the general elections without its distinctive ‘bat’ electoral symbol.
“Our victory was transformed into defeat due to the manipulation of election results in Form 47,” Barrister Gohar asserted.
He stated that the white paper is compiled from reports by international organizations, foreign media, and newspapers, and emphasized the need for electoral reforms to eradicate rigging from future polls.
PTI Secretary General Omar Ayub criticized the ECP for failing to conduct transparent elections despite receiving substantial funds for the purpose, demanding the resignation of the chief election commissioner.
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