DUBAI: There is a lot of confusion and lack of clarity on how the Judicial Commission of the Supreme Court, led by Chief Justice Nasirul Mulk, will determine whether the 2013 elections were manipulated or influenced pursuant to a systematic effort or design by anyone. This could be a very dangerous clause if someone tries to interpret it in a particular manner.It is known that every party and all the main political leaders have complained of rigging, in some form or another, big or small. All these complainants have been asked by the Nasirul Mulk Commission to present evidence by April 15 and each losing candidate, of whatever area or party, will now dispatch tons of paperwork to the commission. Although, each complaint would be of an individual nature, though some may be directed against a party or a group, there would be one common factor in all these complaints. This lowest common denominator will be the performance, negligence, inefficiency, incompetence, manipulation or direct interference of the Returning Officers (read Election Commission of Pakistan). So if there are a large number of complaints against the conduct and incompetence of the ECP, and if despite such large numbers the top executives of the ECP, the Chief Election Commissioner or the other Members, did nothing to stop the free-for-all by individuals, a case will emerge that the 2013 election “was manipulated or influenced pursuant to a systematic effort or by design by someone.” This “someone” in this particular case would be the ECP, the country’s only constitutional institution to conduct “organise, impartial, honest, fair and just polls, in accordance with law.”So to those who argue that the blame cannot be proved against the winners, who later formed the federal or provincial governments, it can be proved against the authority which was required by law and the Constitution to deliver a clean and transparent poll. And individual or collective complaints and evidence given by the aggrieved parties can help the Nasirul Mulk Commission to determine that the ECP did, or did not, perform its required duty. If it did not, the whole exercise would come under a cloud.Probably that is why the PTI chief Imran Khan says the year 2015 will be an election year.Even if it is not, if irregularities are found in a large number of constituencies, and if the PTI decides to quit the assemblies, a new general election will become inevitable any way.
