Suspend local govts for fair election: Elahi

LAHORE: Pakistan Muslim League-Q senior central leader and former deputy prime minister Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi has said that free, fair and transparent election cannot be held without suspending local governments.

He alleged that N-League has started pre-poll rigging in Punjab through local governments, N-League LG members and chairmen are undertaking works of N-League candidates locally and also organising their public meetings, LG members and chairmen are threatening the polling staff and are influencing them.

Talking to the PML-Q leaders, workers and prominent figures of Gujrat and Talagang at his residence here Monday, Ch Pervaiz Elahi said that for holding fair and transparent election in the Punjab it is essential that local governments should be completely suspended until July 25, only suspending development funds of local governments is not enough.

He said the caretaker governments are claiming about holding of fair and transparent elections but if the local governments are not suspended until July 25 then this claim of the caretaker government will not be based on reality, as such the caretaker governments and Election Commission of Pakistan should take immediate notice of this situation so that their claim about transparency of election seems to be based on reality.