ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) on Monday rejected the results of Gilgit-Baltistan Legislative Assembly's elections, accusing the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government of rigging, bullying, and using state machinery to acquire the required results.
On the 24 general seats for the 33-member Legislative Assembly of Gilgit-Baltistan, the polling for which was held on Sunday, the ruling PTI has secured nine seats, independent seven, Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) three, the PML-N two, and Majlis-e-Wahdat-ul-Muslimeen (MWM) won one seat, according to the unofficial results.
In a series of tweets on Monday, PML-N Vice President Maryam Nawaz alleged that the elections in G-B were "rigged" and a few seats that the PTI won was through "begging" and "use of force".
"Neither did the PTI have any existence in G-B previously nor would it have now. The few seats it [PTI] got in begging, was due to force, rigging, and changing loyalties of PML-N candidates, was all because of help of the "selectors". For the first time, the government in the Centre has faced such a defeat, which is telling the story of its defeat in the days to come," she said.
In another tweet she stated: "PTI's inability to get a simple majority despite worst rigging and changing loyalties through the entire state power, government institutions and use of government machinery, is just a shameful defeat...It's also a distrust expressed by the people in the 'puppet'."
"Likewise in Centre and Punjab, you may make the government [in G-B] by using 'crutches' despite having failed to get the simple majority, but you must see your face in the mirror shown to you by the people of Gilgit-Baltistan," she added.
She also called upon the people of G-B not to lose courage because of the "rigging", adding, "This wall of sand is about to collapse and the game of these puppets is about to end".
She also thanked the people of G-B, saying the way the people of the G-B participated in her election rallies was a "referendum" against the "fake" government.
Speaking at a news conference here, former premier and senior PML-N leader Shahid Khaqan Abbasi alleged that the "worst pre-poll rigging" took place in the elections to defeat the opponents.
He accused the caretaker setup in Gilgit-Baltistan of influencing the election process through pre-poll rigging.
He alleged that "pressure tactics" were used against the opponents to pave the way for the PTI, saying that pressure tactics were used against six PML-N candidates including former ministers and the speaker who were given the tickets of another party.
"Candidates were fielded in a very "scientific" way to defeat our candidates," Abbasi said, adding that federal ministers openly violated election code of conduct and the Centre took control of powers of the people of G-B.
He said the federal government made promises worth Rs200 billion of development projects that "we and they know very well that they cannot fulfill at all".
"It is unfortunate that nothing has been learnt in the last two years. Nothing was learnt from the failures of the last election and now yet again [they are trying] to impose another non-representative government on Gilgit-Baltistan," he maintained, adding the pattern of 2018 general elections was repeated in Sunday's G-B polls.
"Even the role of intelligence agencies was the same as it was in 2018 elections. This process of interfering in elections should end now," he added.
Abbasi claimed that despite the intervention of the federal government, "there was no PTI vote in the G-B because the people there are also fed up with Imran Khan like other people of Pakistan".
"Despite all this rigging, the PTI could not get a clear majority," he said, adding the elections were scheduled for August 15, and these were postponed to gain time for the rigging.
"Unfortunately, it was another 'black election' in the history of Pakistan," he added.
To a question, he said that at present there was no contact of the party leaders with the state institutions, adding that Maryam had talked about the dialogue among all those institutions that influence governance in the country.
"This is not anything new and we had been saying this in the past well as we believe that the solution to the problems is that to sit on a table and talk about the country, not for getting the power or for vested interests, but for the sake of the people's problems and for the country," he added.
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