ISLAMABAD (Dunya News) – The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has demanded the resignation of the chief election commissioner (CEC) and the chief justice of Pakistan (CJP), as well as the immediate return of the stolen seats in Rawalpindi division during the Feb 8 elections to the party.
PTI’s demand came minutes after Rawalpindi Commissioner Liaquat Ali Chattha accused CEC Sikandar Sultan Raja and CJP Qazi Faez Isa of being complicit in the rigging, admitting that winning candidates were made to lose on 13 seats in his division. Following his confession, Chattha resigned as the Rawalpindi commissioner.
“Chattha's admission of electoral fraud confirms PTI's stance on electoral theft,” the PTI said in a statement released by its spokesperson.
The spokesperson said Chattha's revelation exposes the nefarious role played by individuals involved in the conspiracy to steal the public mandate under the cover of darkness.
He said that it is now clear that the winning PTI-backed independent candidates, who were overwhelmingly supported by the public, were replaced with losers during the night.
After Chattha accepted responsibility for electoral fraud in Rawalpindi, the PTI spokesperson said Sikandar Sultan Raja no longer had any legal or moral justification to remain in the role of the chief election commissioner.
All officers involved in the conspiracy, including the chief election commissioner and Chief Justice of Pakistan Qazi Faez Isa, should resign from their positions immediately, he demanded.
The spox said that in light of Chattha’s statement, the stolen 86 seats of the PTI should be immediately returned by recounting the votes according to Form 45.
He said that after the widespread evidence of massive-scale electoral fraud, all involved criminals should be prosecuted according to the constitution and law.
He added that power should be taken away from the political group rejected by the electorate to avoid plunging the country into political and economic instability.
The spokesperson further said that the stolen mandate of the people should be immediately returned to their rightful leaders, the founder of the PTI and the PTI itself, in whom the public has expressed full confidence through their votes.
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