Nadra says PTI using pressure tactics to get favourable reports

ISLAMABAD: National Database & Registration Authority (Nadra) has objected to interference of Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaaf (PTI) in its internal affairs at the crucial time when the authority is busy in the process of voter verification in disputed constituencies and being presented as witness before general election 2013 inquiry commission.
A visit by top PTI leader Shah Mehmood Qureshi on Tuesday to the protest camp of protesting Nadra employees has been termed by Nadra officials as an attempt to coerce Nadra into submitting favourable voter verification reports. According to general secretary of Nadra employees Union Gohar Marwat, the protesters also held a meeting with PTI chairman Imran Khan at his Bani Gala residence on Sunday.
“Nadra is aware of the issues facing its employees and is proactively trying to address them. But it is unfortunate if these protests are used as pressure tactic to forward personal or external agenda,” said a spokesperson of Nadra.
Currently, Nadra is engaged in the process of voter verification for NA 128, NA 118 and numerous other disputed constituencies where PTI is complainant. The authority has already submitted 39 voter verification reports including one on Imran Khan’s own constituency NA122.
Last week Nadra chairman Usman Yousuf Mobin testified before the judicial commission headed by Chief Justice Nasir-ul-Mulk as witness and stated that unreadable votes could not be termed invalid. PTI chairman has expressed shock over the statement.
Sources in Nadra have confirmed that PTI is constantly pressuring the authority through different means to get favourable reports in disputed constituencies. On April 16, 2015, Imran Khan wrote to Nadra chairman urging him to replace head of the verification in the authority, accusing the officer of being biased. However, Nadra chairman refused to accommodate Imran Khan’s demand without solid evidence against the said officer who had supervised all verification reports of 2013 elections. No proof was furnished by PTI against the officer till date.
Imran Khan had also visited Nadra twice without invitation while his own case of NA 122 was under forensic scrutiny by Nadra. According to official, this was the first instance in the history of Nadra when a petitioner directly approached the chairman while the authority was adjudicating his case.
After the second meeting, Imran Khan told the media that he had obtained pre-scan report from Nadra, which confirmed massive rigging. However Nadra chairman responded immediately through his maiden press conference that the authority had not provided any documents to PTI chief and that ImraKhan’s statement was factually incorrect. When contacted by The News, PTI’s national organiser Shah Mehmood Qureshi strongly dispelled the impression of interference in Nadra affairs.
“I was going to party office when I saw the protesting Nadra employees outside the Authority’s headquarters. They stopped me and apprised me of their stance on lack of service structure for Nadra employees. I listened to their demands and told them that we are opposition party, not the government, but we will play our role to resolve their problems,” he said.
He said PTI is not pressuring Nadra for issuance of favourable reports. “The party is only asking Nadra to expedite the process of voter verification so that the election tribunals could decide the cases,” he added.
When asked about the letter from PTI chief to Nadra seeking removal of its verification officer, Qureshi said he was not aware of any such letter.Commenting on the visit of Imran Khan to Nadra headquarters, he said the visit was aimed at asking Nadra to complete the verification process within the stipulated time.
He said he was not aware of the meeting between Nadra employees and PTI chairman Imran Khan.However, general secretary of Nadra employees Union Gohar Marwat confirmed his meeting with Imran Khan on Sunday. He said the PTI chief offered full support to protesting employees. “Imran Khan is not happy with Nadra officials involved in voter verification and he sent Shah Mehmood Qureshi on Tuesday to convey his full support.”Gohar said Nadra employees are demanding proper service structure and they will continue their protest until their demands are met.
A Nadra official said that PTI was using the authority’s employees for its political agenda. “No chairman can afford closing down of Nadra centres across the country but PTI is instigating this outcome,” he said.