DASKA/ SIALKOT - Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Senator Shibli Faraz said Sunday that PTI won the by-election in Daska with a clear majority and Imran Khan’s narrative is getting overwhelming acceptance from the people in by-elections. Prime Minister Imran Khan is determined to eliminate the politics of money and vandalism from the country, he said. 

The information minister stated this while talking to journalists along with Minister for Science and Technology Chaudhry Fawad Hussain, Special Assistant to Punjab Chief Minister Firdous Ashiq Awan and PTI candidate of NA 75 Ali Asjad Malhi.

He said PML-N leadership had gone wild and frustrated as the anti-state narrative of Muhammad Nawaz Sharif was gradually losing the support due to the mass acceptance of Prime Minister Imran Khan.

Shibli Faraz said that the PML-N was badly scared from the narrative of Prime Minister Iman Khan, who wanted to bring transparency in elections by ending rigging in the elections and politics of intimidation. In some constituencies their politics has already met fag end of the day.

He said the PML-N was in the habit of doing politics of intimidation, hooliganism and money and they repeated their practice by sending vandalism specialists Rana Sanaullah, Javed Latif and others to pollute the atmosphere of electioneering.

The leadership of PML-N was shedding crocodile tears which had refreshed the memories of Model Town massacre in which innocent women and children were brutally killed sans any remorse, he said.

He said that assassination of workers on the polling day was under the patronage of Rana Sanaullah, the man responsible for Model Town killings. PML-N leaders during their election campaign in Daska used to say that they will win the elections with the power of gun.

He said due to mass acceptance of Prime Minister Imran Khan’s narrative, the PTI had got more votes in Daska and Wazirabad constituencies in recent by elections as compared to election 2018. The difference between the votes polled to PTI and PML-N in Wazirabad has narrowed from 33,000 to only 4,000.

The lead of PML-N was 40,000 in 2018 but they were being defeated in Daska the last day by-elections.

Castigating the opposition, he said they had already been exposed owing to hypocrisy shown in their non-interest in making the Senate elections transparent and stopping vote buying or purchasing.

In the past Senate elections, the opposition parties had indulged in vote buying and purchasing to bring elite class in the upper house of the parliament.

He said that the government was working hard to introduce electronic voting system to ensure transparency. Legislation was being enacted to give right to vote to expatriate Pakistanis, he said.

He thanked the people of Daska for reposing confidence over Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) in the by elections.

Ali Asjad Malhi, the candidate of NA 75 Daska strongly denied the allegations of enduring defeat in his own village, saying his family had never lost the elections from his village since 1947. In the last day’s elections, he won the elections with the lead of 1,000 votes.

On this occasion, Chaudhry Fawad Hussain demanded of the Election Commission of Pakistan to notify success of PTI candidate in the by polls. He said PTI is striving for free, fair and transparent elections by ending the politics of horse-trading and sale and purchase of votes. He, however, said that his party will accept ECP’s decision.

Chaudhry Fawad Hussain said his ministry had developed a technology for electronic voting which would be transferred to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) soon. The technology has been developed with the support of National Institute of Electronics, National University of Science and Technology and COMSATS and it would help ensure transparency in the election process through electronic voting. “Electronic voting can help get rid of rigging in elections”, he said.

The minister stated that the opposition complained of rigging in the by-polls only in the constituency where Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) candidate won however their own candidates won in Nowshera and Wazirabad which they accepted happily.

The  minister said although we had spent crore of rupees in the past during contesting by-election in each union council during the whole week but when late Kalsoom Nawaz contested election, Rs three billion were spent in a single constituency without any audit.

Chaudhry Fawad said that we should have raised allegations of rigging when Maryam Nawaz in her tweet announced the election result late night at 1:00 am, declaring her victory.

Rejecting the baseless claims of Maryam Nawaz regarding delay in results in Daska, Chaudhry Fawad said “We do not live on Mars and are well aware of the fog situation in the area.” He demanded the ECP to issue formal notification about winning of PTI candidate, Ali Asjad Malhi from NA-75 (Daska).

Special Assistant to the Punjab Chief Minister on Information Dr. Firdous Ashiq Awan said rule of law will prevail in the murder case and culprits will get the punishment according to law after completion of inquiry.

The ministers, along with PTI leaders Firdous Ashiq Awan, Usman Dar, Ali Asjad Malhi, and others also visited family of the deceased PTI worker and offered Fateha for the departed soul.

They also prayed for the early recovery of the injured in the incident.