LAHORE: PML-N leader Khawaja Saad Rafique on Sunday said hijacking the polling stations reserved for women and coercing the voters there was a PTI tradition. With the rigging champion Aleem Khan around him, Imran Khan was planning for rigging but levelling allegations against the PML-N, he added. Expressing his views in Geo News programme ‘Aapas ki Baat’, Saad said Aleem, a former PML-Q provincial minister, was an expert in filling the (vote) bags. He added that the decision to challenge the election tribunal’s verdict on NA-125 was of the party. Saad said the refusal of Jahangir Tareen’s counsel to defend the case before the Supreme Court clearly meant that the PTI leader wanted a stay order. Baloch moved the apex court to prove that his degree was genuine, he added. The PML-N leader said apart from the personality, the citizens of Lahore also checked the political party, leadership and programme for voting. He said there was a decrease in Imran’s vote bank because of his lies and allegations-based politics, adding that Aleem was contesting elections on poles and trees. Saad remarked that the PTI and the PML-N were depending on (currency) notes and votes respectively for the NA-122 by-election. The federal minister said Najam Sethi was too much neutral during his stint as caretaker chief minister that caused serious damage to the PML-N. From the chief secretary to the SHO, Sethi transferred every official, but despite that, they faced the rigging allegation and were unhappy with him, he recalled. Saad said they were going to challenge the ECP’s decision to halt the relief package for farmers, adding that the PML-N was being punished for the poorly trained election staff and they too had some reservations, if the ECP continued with the same attitude. He said Imran was in habit of pressurising the institutions and had succeeded in bullying the ECP to some extent. He added that China Pakistan Economic Corridor was delayed only due to Imran who had been ignoring the national interests for the sake of personal gains. About his speech on the challenges faced by democracy, Saad said it was meant for two/ three circles. Imran, through his non-serious political, tried to damage the nascent democracy; however, his first sit-in failed due to a united Parliament, while the second one was exposed by the Judicial Commission, he explained. Saad added that Imran’s third sit-in was currently in progress. Some of the sit-in’s snakes had died with several others fainted, but the job had not been completed yet. Saad said those working in the section of media, which was under the owners’ control or lacked professional journalists, were getting Rs 5 million in salary and defaming the country, nation, politicians and democracy in their ‘night shops’ (talk-shows) during night. These anchors never worked as reporter in newspapers and print media, he said, adding that the PML-N did not have TV screens but they would fight with the mike at rallies in their constituencies. Sethi, in his analysis, said a defeat to Ayaz Sadiq would be a great dent to the ruling party, adding that on the other hand, Imran would again cry rigging - just like he did after the 2013 general elections - in case of a defeat. The PTI chairman would not accept PML-N’s victory in NA-122 and he had already expressed that point, he added Imran wanted to make the Judicial Commission verdict controversial by winning the NA-122 by-poll and, therefore, was leading the campaign in the constituency, he said. According to Sethi, PTI’s victory in NA-122 would also affect the local government polls. The by-election is the third part of sit-in and it has to be seen whether the people would believe in the conspiracy theory and decide in favour of a person like Aleem Khan. Sethi said the Afghan government held Pakistan responsible for everything happening there to conceal its weaknesses. The United States had made Ashraf Ghani and Abdullah Abdullah to sit together so that they could find solutions to the problems but it could not happen, as they were pulling each other different directions, he added. The Afghan government’s affairs were so serious that even the cabinet could not be formed in Afghanistan, as the two factions did not agree on any strategy, he said. Afghanistan would soon a severe financial crisis, Sethi predicted
