GDA holds protest rallies against election ‘rigging’

SUKKUR: The Grand Democratic Alliance took out protest rallies and demonstrations against the election results of 2018 in Sukkur, Khairpur, Nausharoferoz, Shikarpur,Ghotki, Jacoabad, Mirpurkhas, Umerkot, Sanghar and Hyderabad. A large number of GDA workers and its leaders took part in the rallies alleging that the Election Commission of Pakistan and the Returning Officers were involved in the technical rigging of the results.

The GDA’s candidate from PS 31, Syed Ismail Shah Rashdi, Vice President PML-F Sindh, said the election results of the GDA candidates were manipulated as part of a conspiracy. He said after polling, his polling agents in PS-31 were removed from the polling stations and the ballot papers were stamped in favour of the PPP candidate.

Furthermore, despite a lapse of five days the form 45 was not provided to the GDA candidate by the Returning Officers, he said. Rashdi said he was leading with over 10,000 votes against the PPP candidate Naeem Ahmed Kharal, but they were manipulated to hand down victory to the PPP candidate.

He said the Election Commission and the ROs ignored their complaints. He said it is very strange that billions were spent to develop RTS which failed on the election day and it paved the way for technical rigging.

Other GDA leaders including President takluka Khairpur Haji Imam Bakhash Phulpoto, Haji Abdul Karim Shar, MPA Dr. Rafiq Banbhan alleged that the aliens were behind the victory of the PPP candidates.

They demanded the resignation of the chief election commissioner in view of the ECP’s failure to prevent gross irregularities and rigging in the general elections. The GDA leaders demanded re-election in Sindh in view of the widespread rigging in polls.

Hundreds activists of the GDA lead by Nahid Khan, Rafiq Magsi and others in Hyderabad protested and staged demo in front of the Press Club, Hyderabad.

Addressing a rally they said July 25th was the day of selection and not election. They said massive rigging turned the losing candidates winners. They criticized the Sindh caretaker government for failure to hold free and fair elections. They asked the Chief Justice of the Pakistan to take suo moto notice of rigging. They said the mandate of their 25 NA seats and 45 Provincial Assembly seats was stolen and transferred to Asif Ali Zaradri. The GDA leaders threatened to lay siege of the offices of the Chief Election Commissioner if the institutions did not take notice of the rigging.

Similarly, GDA’s candidate on PS-51 Faquir Jadam Mangrio and others took out a rally in Umerkot against the alleged rigging in the election. Addressing the participants, Arbab Farooq Sattar son of Arbab Ghulam Rahim said some people were nabbed while stuffing the ballot boxes but they were released without any action against them.

Expressing surprise over the wide margin with which the PPP has won the election, Arbab Farooq termed the victory given to the PPP by some hidden hands. The PML-F district president Faquir Maghan Mangrio rejected the results and demanded re-election in the province.

Addressing the rally Faquir Jadam Mangrio said that his polling agents were removed from the polling stations and they were not given forms 45 and 46.Jadam demanded registration of cases of rigging against all DROs, ROs and AROs in Sindh.

Jadam accused that the Secretary Election Commission Sindh played in the hands of the PPP leadership and helped them to rig the elections. Jadam complained that on PS-51 8,000 votes were rejected to defeat him. He alleged that the same trick was played to defeat PTI’s vice president Shah Mehmood Qureshi. Later the rally moved to Samaro town, where they staged a sit-in on the Samaro-Umerkot road.

Addressing the a big public gathering outside Badin Press Club, GDA leaders Dr Fehmida Mirza and Dr Zulfikar Ali Mirza said the COAS, Chief Justice of Pakistan and the CEC had assured fair and transparent polls in the country, but at least in Sindh their claims proved wrong and the PPP snatched the mandate of millions of people.

They charged that the deployed army was oblivious of the working of the presiding officers and other poling staff, who according to them, massively rigged and manipulated the elections in favour of the PPP candidates. Dr Fehmida Mirza alleged that the cronies of Anwar Majeed used the looted public wealth to purchase the votes and the polling staff”.

Dr Zulfilkar Ali Mirza said despite their defeat they would continue to fight against Asif Ali Zardari and other corrupt people for the rights of the people of Badin district and rest of the province.