Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), the party of jailed former Prime Minister Imran Khan, staged large-scale protests over the weekend to denounce the “rigging in last week’s general elections.” Ta.
Voting for the national election ended on Thursday, with both Khan and his arch-rival Nawaz Sharif of the Pakistan Muslim League (PMLN) having finished voting. declared victory. Although a court order effectively excluded Khan’s PTI party from voting, the PTI supported a number of candidates running as “independents.”
Suspicions of voter fraud began swirling even before voting ended. When the votes were counted on Friday, it became clear that the PTI had won. upset victory Despite opposition from the powerful military, the military usually plays the role of king, even when it does not simply bypass elections and seize power in a coup.
Pakistani military authorities openly disparaged Khan and the PTI, accusing the military of colluding with foreign forces. boot Khan will step down following a vote of no confidence in April 2022.
After leaving office, Khan was faced with hundreds of corruption and fraud charges, and ultimately convicted and imprisoned Four of the charges span a total of 34 years, but he and his supporters say the charges were a political blow to prevent him from being re-elected as prime minister.
Khan’s conviction disqualifies him from running for office and he is not even allowed to make political speeches from prison. His two speeches to PTI supporters since entering prison were both AI-generated with his approval.
The military was also furious with PTI supporters for damaging military property. a riot broke out After Khan’s arrest in May 2023, the possibility of PTI taking to the streets again to protest a stolen election was taken very seriously.
As a result of the vote counting, the PTI won 97 seats in the National Assembly, while the PMLN won 73 seats. As of Monday morning, votes were still being counted and recounted in seven seats, but it is unlikely to be enough to significantly change the outcome.
PTI alleges that the military rigged dozens of races it should have won, denying it the simple parliamentary majority it needed to install a prime minister of its own choice. On Saturday, the PTI told its supporters to begin peaceful demonstrations.
The next day, PTI protesters blocked Most of the day will be spent on the Peshawar-Islamabad highway. Several other smaller political parties also joined the demonstration, voicing their own grievances about voter fraud and another highway blockade.
PTI leader Khurram Shah told his supporters on Sunday: “I appeal to you to remain peaceful and not to be provoked as there is a conspiracy to turn you against our law enforcement agencies and create a law and order situation.” Told.
“I guarantee your mission won’t go anywhere,” Shah said. “You will get back that mandate. We will go to court and fight the legal battle. We have been preparing and we are confident that we will get back all the constituencies in Karachi. .”
Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) Paused Votes were counted in two constituencies on Sunday in response to PTI’s complaints that the total vote count was questionable. The ECP also issued recount orders to dozens of polling stations.
P.T.I. claimed He claimed that 18 seats the party was supposed to have won were “erroneously changed” by election officials to steal victory from the party.
“In some constituencies, including Islamabad, by night PTI candidates were clearly winning by large margins, but ironically, behind-the-scenes political maneuvering was taking place that made their apparent victory But in the morning, it turned into a defeat,” PTI Central Intelligence Director Raof Hasan charged. .
“These seats were won by PTI. The mandate that the people of Karachi have given to PTI is being stolen by these corrupt and spineless bureaucrats,” PTI Secretary General Omar Ayub fumed. did.
Ayub threatened dire consequences unless the election officials he accused of tampering with the votes quickly confessed and released the correct vote totals.
“You have betrayed the public’s trust. We will nominate you to Congress and subpoena you to a Congressional committee. We will pursue the case against you until you are fired. The choice is yours.” It’s up to you. If you don’t correct your mistake, you will be held legally responsible and fined by the court,” he said.
As of Monday, no one seemed completely sure what would happen next. Despite having the largest number of seats in parliament, the PTI does not have enough seats to form a government. probably No coalition can be formed large enough to claim the prime minister’s chair.
On the other hand, PMLN negotiation Formed a ruling coalition with the third-place Pakistan People’s Party (PPP). If the PMLN and PPP collude to install Nawaz Sharif as prime minister, PTI supporters will likely be furious, especially if they believe some of their seats were stolen by corrupt vote counters.
Waseem Qadir, one of the winning candidates of PTI. switched party Won the race and joined PMLN. Qadir was the general secretary of PTI in Lahore province.
“I have come home. For the sake of the development of my constituency and the people, I have rejoined the PMLN,” Kadir said when announcing his party change.
