Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Karachi President and MPA Khurram Sher Zaman on Monday submitted a request for the deployment of Rangers and army soldiers at the polling stations during the local government elections in the cantonment boards of the metropolis.
In a meeting with officials of the Election Commission of Pakistan, he also called for announcing the date for the local bodies elections elsewhere as soon as possible. In a letter addressed to Aijaz Anwar Chohan, the provincial head of the election commission, the PTI MPA said: “Elections in the past have been controversial due to illegal practices of various political parties, such as casting fake votes and ballot papers, and the collusion of election staff, who generally consist of local staff, is also not uncommon.”
To deal with all these matters and ensure elections were held peacefully in a fair and impartial manner in the cantonment areas of Karachi, the PTI demanded that the army or the Rangers should be deployed inside as well as outside the polling stations in the same manner it was done during the 2018 general election, Zaman said in the letter. “The ECP’s job is to facilitate voters and provide them a convenient and safe environment.”
Talking to the media after meeting with the election commission officials and submitting the letter, he said that the army and the Rangers should take care of arrangements for the cantonment elections. “The ECP should ensure the support of the Rangers or the army for transparent elections. The PTI does not want the cantonment elections to be rigged, because in the past, influential people tried to influence the elections.”
Zaman was accompanied by Sindh Assembly member Shahnawaz Jadoon, PTI leader Adnan Ismail and others. He said development works were carried out in Karachi at a cost of Rs9.90 billion from the special fund of Prime Minister Imran Khan.
The PTI leader said Shahbaz Sharif during his Karachi visit looked very upset for the metropolis. “Shahbaz Sharif's tears show that the provincial government did nothing for Karachi. It was a slap by the PML-N leader on the PPP’s face.”
PTI eyes win
PTI leaders had said on Sunday the party would win a clear majority and could easily form a local government in the cantonment boards of the metropolis.
“The PTI is in elections with the best candidates who are honest, conscientious and have a passion for public service,” said Aftab Hussain Siddiqui, the party’s central joint secretary and the MNA from NA-247.
He was addressing a meeting of the Karachi Cantonment Board and Clifton Cantonment Board candidates at the party office. Siddiqui said the ruling parties of Karachi and Sindh over the last several decades had pushed Karachi towards decline instead of progress.
“At present, the Sindh government has been treating Karachi like a stepmother,” he said. Siddiqui said that Karachi, which generated more than 70 per cent of the country's revenue, suffered major problems such as broken roads, lack of clean drinking water and overflowing sewage. “All the development works done in the city so far are being done with the special fund of Prime Minister Imran Khan,” he said.
He said Prime Minister Khan was aware of the problems of Karachi, so the federal government was paying special attention to the development of the city. The PTI MNA said the Karachi Cantonment Board had currently been suffering a severe financial crisis and was not getting enough revenue.
“After the success of the Karachi Cantonment Board elections, our representatives will formulate a comprehensive policy to overcome the problem of revenue and implement it so that the problems of the residents of the cantonment can be solved on a priority basis,” he said.