ISLAMABAD: Senators on Friday warned that any attempt to rig the coming general elections could have serious consequences for the country.

The warning has come at a time when caretaker governments and the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) are being accused by some quarters of denying a level-playing field to all political parties.

Taking part in a discussion on the law and order and political situation in the country, senators belonging to the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) alleged that pre-poll rigging had already begun and accused the caretaker governments of being involved in it.

They termed the treatment being meted out to former prime minister Nawaz Sharif in prison shameful and said this was part of an agenda of pushing the PML-N to the wall. They specifically targeted Punjab’s caretaker Chief Minister Dr Hasan Askari over registration of terrorism cases against senior PML-N leaders.

They also raised questions over the conviction of Mr Sharif, pointing out that legal experts had termed it a weak judgement which had failed to meet basic demands of justice.

Former information minister Pervaiz Rashid went to the extent of warning that if the election results did not match public sentiments, those paving the way for a particular political party would have to face people’s wrath. “We do not want this and you should also be cautious. Be contended with what you have already done and let the people decide what they want through the power of the ballot,” he said without naming any individual or institution.

PML-N legislators accuse caretakers, ECP of favouring a particular party

“You have meddled enough in the pre-election process to colour and shape it as your whims, besides playing a role in making and breaking the parties,” he added.

Stating that the country had not been conquered by a battalion of the royal British army, he said the sanctity of the ballot must be maintained.

Mushahid Hussain Sayed said that those trying to interfere in the electoral process would be exposed with their names and designations, be they are employees of the ‘agriculture department’, PTV or Wapda. He said any attempt of stuffing ballot boxes would evoke a strong reaction and the situation might be beyond control. “We should learn from mistakes of the past. Stealing the mandate of people will not work. It will have consequences,” he remarked.

He termed the accountability court’s judgement against Mr Sharif flawed and weak, pointing out that it was in violation of a Supreme Court judgement rendered by Justice Asif Saeed Khosa that it is for the prosecution to prove a crime and not for the accused to prove his innocence.

Senator Javed Abbasi of the PML-N said that almost all political parties had reservations over what he called efforts being made for giving a walkover to a political party. “The situation could be disastrous if allowed to remain unchanged,” he added.

He deplored the crackdown on political workers and registration of terrorism cases against leaders and workers of the PML-N. He asked the government to explain as to what clause of the Constitution had been violated. He alleged that tactics were being used to prevent the PML-N from carrying out an effective election campaign. The timing of sending Mr Sharif to jail speaks volumes. He said the ECP should not keep its eyes shut and take notice of what was being done for pushing the PML-N to the wall.

Retired Gen Abdul Qayyum was of the opinion that the constitutional provision for putting in place a caretaker government should be reconsidered after the general elections. He referred to the system followed by India where the sitting government conducts elections.

Talking about recent incidents of terrorism in the country, he said instability in Afghanistan and aggressive attitude of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi were among the factors responsible for them.

He criticised Punjab CM Askari, saying that he might be a good professor, but running a government was not his cup of tea. He termed Mr Askari intellectually dishonest and said his political bias towards a party was an open secret.

Asif Kirmani said a lobby was working to introduce a ‘controlled democracy’ in the country instead of genuine democracy. He warned that those planning to bring sham democracy in the country would not find a place to hide.

Ayesha Raza Farooq slammed the ECP for giving extraordinary powers to army officials at polling stations. She asked as to what was the need for deploying army troops inside polling stations, giving them powers of magistrate and a role in transmission of election results.

The Senate will meet again on Saturday (today) at 10am.

Published in Dawn, July 21st, 2018