Vote rigging allegations: PML-N demands Commissioner produce evidence

LAHORE: Reacting to the claims of rigging by Rawalpindi Commissioner Liaquat Ali Chattha in Rawalpindi division, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) spokesperson Marriyum Aurangzeb expressed surprise over the allegations of rigging and asked him to provide evidence.

While addressing a press conference here at the PML-N Secretariat on Saturday, she demanded the inclusion of Rawalpindi Commissioner Liaquat Ali Chattha’s name on the Exit Control List (ECL). Why he (the commissioner) waited eight days before handing himself over to the police, suggesting that an investigation should be conducted into his activities during that time? “You [Rawalpindi Commissioner Liaquat Ali Chattha] have charged someone with something so go to the court of law,” she said.

She maintained that the commissioner lacked the authority to access election results, saying that he neither served as a Returning Officer (RO) nor a District Returning Officer (DRO). She further stated that the commissioner, who claimed that fake leads were created in the Rawalpindi division to defeat PTI-backed independents, should have approached the Election Commission when the results were delayed for three days.

She insisted that the commissioner should provide evidence to the media or otherwise, to support his claim that there was no mistake in Form 45.

The PML-N spokesperson also blamed the PTI of fabricating Form 45s in response to inquiries from international media, alleging that they first claimed to have screenshots and then circulated fake Form 45s on social media.

Marriyum further said the country is passing through a critical phase and everyone should act responsibly or everyone would lose everything, if there was a big loss. “I respect and I request everyone that we all should act in a responsible way, the country is going through such a critical junction that it would be everyone’s loss if a big loss happens,” she said.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2024