Islamabad    -  Pakistan Peoples Party Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said Sunday that the challenge of the no-confidence motion that PM Imran Khan is facing is ‘given by the Pakistani people.’

Speaking at a news conference here, he said the no-confidence motion was bound to succeed. “All the democratic forces of the country are using democratic means to challenge this undemocratic person,” he said.  “PPP’s 10-day long Awami march proved that the people no longer trust Imran Khan,” he claimed.

“This is our right and a parliamentary tool. Just like it is the common man’s right to go to the voting booth and cast their vote, it is a parliamentarian’s right to vote in the no-confidence. Imran Khan is using abusive language since he is panicking and can clearly see his defeat,” he said.

Bilawal said a respectable man should have himself realised that he does not have the numbers. “Imran Khan believes in a fixed match and only knows how to rig the elections. The PM is not trying to win the no-confidence but wants to rig. We will not let this defeated man rig anything. The people of the country will not let him rig anything,” he asserted.

 The PPP chief also said that that Article 6 of the constitution was very clear and applies to every person who wishes to meddle with a constitutional process.

“When everybody can see that this man is trying to commit rigging, his representatives are announcing to not count votes and the police are forcefully barging into the Parliament Lodges to arrest honourable members, what message is being sent out,” he said.

 Bilawal appealed to the Chief Justice of the Islamabad High Court, the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Pakistan and the Chief Election Commissioner to protect the voting rights of every parliamentarian.

He said that no one should be stopped from casting their vote, whether they belong to the opposition or the treasury benches. “There is an ongoing conspiracy to deprive the members of the parliament of their right. We will not tolerate this. We appeal to every single democratic individual who has sworn an oath to protect the constitution of Pakistan to ensure that the constitutional process is followed. This is the sole solution that can help the country emerge from this crisis,” he said.

The PPP chief added: “We cannot run this country on the rule of the jungle. There has to be a law of the land. We are peaceful and democratic people who did not throw a single pebble during a 10-day long protest all over the country. It is the right of the parliamentarians to cast their vote, and they will do so.”

“This no-confidence is against the polarised anarchy we are headed towards as a society, caused by Imran Khan. We want to head towards free and fair elections after the no-confidence. We want to create an environment in which the representatives of the people sit together and transparent elections are held so that a government that has the mandate of the people is formed,” he said.

“Imran Khan not only intends to rig the no-confidence, but also the upcoming elections. This man’s foreign funding case is still pending in the Election Commission of Pakistan. We request the ECP to announce its decision regarding this case at its earliest. The nation should know which foreigners belonging to India and Israel funded this man,” he maintained.

Responding to questions, Bilawal said that the reason he was proud of this no-confidence was that this was the first democratic one in the country’s history and was backed by the people of Pakistan.

He said that the statements of the Prime Minister were a result of sheer panic and desperation, and should not be given attention. “No prime minister in the history of Pakistan has ever been so desperate, who feels compelled to abuse everyone. We would like to ask the PM who he termed as ‘animals’ in his speech. The prime minister’s desperate efforts will not be successful. The coming time is very difficult and the result of Imran Khan’s tsunami will be before us. This calls for an environment where people work together to help this country emerge from the crises caused by Imran Khan. We will be successful in creating such an atmosphere,” he said.

He said that no delay was taken in his efforts to approach those who could aid in the removal of this undemocratic man. If we want electoral reforms, we would have to work with everyone.

“This is how politics is done, listening to others, putting forth our perspective and then reaching a compromise. This country is not of a single person. Talking to representatives of political parties for the betterment of the people is something we will continue to do,” he said.

Bilawal questioned would Imran Khan be so baffled had our numbers not been complete. “I challenge Imran Khan to hold a session and let his members vote. Our no-confidence will be successful. Our meetings with the former allies of the government have exceeded expectations,” he stated.

The PPP chief said that the PPP believed in democracy and was confident as well as happy to see that the opponent so worried. “We are preparing for a win. Imran would not have been in such trouble had he learnt from the Charter of Democracy. We have come to know that schools are being closed wherever Imran Khan is holding speeches and the students are being made to attend. Audio of applause is being played via soundtracks,” he added.

The PPP chief said that it was his advice to Imran Khan that he should resign. “Imran Khan’s threats will go against him. We have had issues with the MQM but both political parties are of the view that we have a better chance of improving people’s lives if we work together. We do not need to agree on every issue but there is scope for common ground to be reached,” he said.