PTI protestors demand selective reelection under army supervision

KARACHI/ISLAMABAD/LAHORE: Unflinching Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) anti vote rigging protestors Monday blocked Shar-e-Faisal, a main artery of Karachi, to move authorities into conducting a reelection in the metropolis, where they say their party’s mandate was robbed at gunpoint, Geo News reported.

PTI protestors were demanding of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) and caretaker government to order reelection in Karachi under the supervision of Pakistan Army and federal government employees.

They said election under the employees of city and provincial governments in Karachi is unacceptable as many of these employees were also found involved in election rigging and supported the mafia member in Karachi on general election day.

PTI staged sit-ins in SITE Area and Shara-e-Faisal near Nursery area.

A hundreds of activists of Pakistan Tehreek-Insaf including youngsters, students and families participated in the protest demonstration against vote rigging.

Later, a heavy contingent of riot police turned out at the protest site to disperse the protestors.

Earlier on Monday, the Sindh government also imposed section 144 of the Code of Criminal Procedure in Karachi.

A notification in this regard was issued by the provincial government.

The move appears to be aimed at shooting down PTI's anti poll rigging demonstrations planned for city today (Tuesday).

A PTI spokesman said, no matter what, the protest demonstration would continue till reelection in Karachi.

There in the federal capital, Islamabad, a large number of PTI workers as well as supporters assembled at ‘D-Chowk’ outside Parliament House to protest against the alleged vote rigging in Karachi, Lahore, and other cities.

The PTI workers were carrying posters, placards, and banners inscribed with slogans against alleged rigging.

The protesters mostly comprising youth, women and children were shouting slogans holding placards against Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) for organized rigging in NA-250 and some other constituencies
in Karachi.

Anti vote rigging protestors also denounced Pakistan Muslim League
Nawaz (PML-N) for alleged rigging election in Lahore and other areas of Punjab.

Election Commission of Pakistan also drew PTI protestors’ fire for its inaction against election rigging.

In Lahore, the sit-in staged by the PTI voters, supporters and party members at Ghazi Chowk continued on the second day in which a large number of participants chanted slogans against PML-N for hijacking the mandate of PTI.

Situation once again remained tense in the area and a number of police personnel were also present on the occasion to control the situation.

The PTI supporters on the occasion rejected the poll results of NA-125 in which, according to unofficial results, PML-N Khawaja Saad Rafique had won. The PTI supporters alleged that polls were massively rigged and the candidates of PML-N misbehaved with women.

Hamid Khan, the PTI candidate from NA-125, while talking to the media, said that he would move to the court against rigging in the polls. He said huge rigging was done in recent elections but Sharif brothers could not run the government through it.

The PML-N supporters also reached the area and there was an exchange of hot words followed by scuffle among the members of both sides. Resultantly, police also charged batons to disperse the protestors.

Another demonstration in Lahore to alleged rigging in polls took place in the area of Ichra in which PTI Punjab (central) president Ejaz Chaudhry, MPA Mian Aslam Iqbal, Naeem Mir and other party members also participated.

The PTI workers blocked the road and rejected the results of NA-122 and NA-125.

Addressing the gathering, Ejaz Chaudhry said that all sources were used against the PTI by the PML-N to rig the polls but protests would continue unless the actual results were brought to surface.

Mian Aslam Iqbal said that PTI workers had a right to record their protest. However, he urged the party activists to avoid doing anything which was against law, avoiding providing an opportunity to the party rivals to point fingers at Imran Khan.

Other speakers on the occasion also said that they would not let the system run unless justice was done to them and transparency was ensured.

Besides, protests also continued in other parts of country, including Karachi where the party activists demanded re-polling in different constituencies of Karachi where MQM had manipulated the results.

The members of other parties, including Muttehida Dini Mahaz, also staged protest against rigging in PS-128, Karachi.

Earlier, a large number of PTI cohorts predominantly women converged at Teen Talwar Chowk in Clifton Sunday evening to register their protest against what they called the most outrageous manipulation of votes in the history of Pakistan.

Chanting slogans against the riggers protestors are demanding of the Election Commission of Pakistan to investigate this “PTI mandate theft” without delay. They added that the protest would continue until the ECP took effective action.

They alleged that hundreds of illegal votes were cast at gunpoint at many polling stations.

"The unreasonable holdup in the polling, the late arrival of balloting material, and the harassment the PTI voters were subjected to, are screaming that PTI fell prey to a criminal vote-rigging conspiracy ", said a woman protestor.

"We have not taken to streets for any personal reasons. We are here for a positive change. You cannot restrain a tsunami for too long", said a youth at the protest.

It was also reported later that unknown gunmen opened fired on the protestors injuring at least two people.