ISLAMABAD - Federal Minister for Planning and Development on Wednesday feared that the current sit-ins of Dr Qadri and Imran Khan could sabotage the Chinese President’s visit to Pakistan and it must be ended to avoid a situation that is dangerous for the country.
He said that the ongoing sit-ins were damaging the country’s image internationally as foreign delegations were cancelling their visits to Pakistan.
He urged the two leaders to let their followers go back home, as it would be a favour to democracy and the country. He also suggested PTI leader Imran Khan to take up the issues in Parliament and seek their constitutional and democratic resolution.
Addressing a news conference here, Ahsan suggested Qadri to shun fascism and talk about democracy and Islam.
Responding to Imran’s rigging allegations and printing of extra ballet papers, he said that printing and distribution of ballet papers was the responsibility of Army and not the caretaker government. He also said that no substance was there in these rigging allegations.
Ahsan also tried to clarify that opening of constituencies was not in the hands of the government and Election Tribunals had the authority to do so.
Referring to Imran’s allegation about slow process of disposal of election petitions, he said that Imran even could not dispose of appeals against his own party elections for the last 18 months.
He told the media that election tribunals had so far disposed of 75 per cent petitions filed by the losing candidates challenging election results in their respective constituencies, while the PTI had not even settled 10 per cent complaints lodged by the party workers.
Ahsan Iqbal advised that first of all the PTI Chief should put his house in order and think about leveling allegations on others for rigging in 2013 elections.
He alleged Imran and referred to an internal report of PTI in which he claimed was mentioned that Imran Khan did not distribute party tickets on merit and that was the major cause of low performance of the party.
On the occasion, Ahsan also rejected the electoral rigging in 2013 elections and said that aforementioned elections were most widely monitored elections in the history of Pakistan. Not only local media and other institutions monitored this election but it was also observed by the international media and even European Union had declared it the most transparent elections in Pakistan.
“In the past caretaker governments were involved in election rigging, but this time the interim set-up was installed with total consensus of all the political parties,” he said.
Even PTI chief Imran Khan was consulted on the appointment of Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) and he had expressed his satisfaction over the appointment of Justice (retd) Fakhrudin G Ibrahim and chief election commissioner. But now Imran was accusing him of electoral rigging, he added.