Election cell set up under Justice Ramday: Imran
August 12, 2014
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan on Monday accused former chief justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, Justice (retd) Khalil-ur-Rehman Ramday, Najam Sethi, ECP Member Justice (retd) Riaz Kayani and Punjab Election Commissioner Anwar Mehboob as the key players behind rigging in the 2013 general elections as he blamed that an election cell was set up under Justice (retd) Ramday and additional ballot papers were printed for rigging the elections.
Addressing a news conference, Imran Khan stressed that his party did not believe that martial law was the solution to Pakistan’s problems.Imran ruled out the possibility of imposition of martial law in the wake of proposed Azadi March and said those who believed the martial law was the solution to Pakistan’s problems wanted to take the nation towards destruction. He said they wanted to strengthen democracy and insisted there was a need to learn from mistakes instead of repeating them again.
Imran alleged that Justice Ramday, Najam Sethi and Justice Riaz Kayani were the key players of the poll match fixing.Among other things, Imran also referred to the regularisation of one lakh employees of the Punjab Education Department just before the elections, who always perform election duties.
The PTI chief charged that the PML-N had appointed its own empires to rig the electoral process. He said after their tsunami in 2013, the ruling party got angry with the PTI and Justice Kayani got posted Mehbood Anwar as ElectionCommissioner, Punjab after transferring him from Karachi as then Punjab election commissioner declined to listen to him.
In the meantime, he said the bureaucracy informed him about the fixing of the match and he also had full confidence for whom the chief justice was playing a role. About the alleged role of Ramday, Imran charged that Ramday arranged a function, wherein key returning officers were invited and it was chaired by the then chief justice.
In the same function, Imran alleged, an election cell was established. The third player was Sethi, who made important postings and transfers and also got printed additional ballot papers for five major Punjab divisions and the papers were of poor quality. He claimed to have an eye witness the process of the shifting of the ballot papers to the residence of Khawaja Saad Rafique and added the related record could be obtained from the cell phones of the returning officers. He promised to produce the eye witness before the media soon.
Imran charged that through rigging, the PML-N increased its tally of votes from 6.8 million to 15 million and at the last minutes of polling, fake voters were arrested with counterfeit ballot papers.
PTI chief pointed out that the returning officers were not under the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) and noted that from 40-50 thousand votes were found fake in the constituencies, where thumb verification was made. He added ballot papers were transported to the returning officers two days before the elections.
Ramday, he charged, was behind the speech of Nawaz Sharif, who asked the returning officers to ensure his victory, who sped up their work after the speech within minutes and the number of votes was increased manifold. He went on to claim; now an attempt was being made to change the polling record.
He alleged Justice (R) Iftikhar Chaudhry had paid tributes to the returning officers and then immediately after that, he announced to support the PML-N during his Balochistan visit.Imran said after PML-N success, Sethi was rewarded first of all and then Justice Ramday was given one more year against the law and his brother had been rewarded while Nadra Chairman Tariq Malik was harassed, threatened and forced to flee abroad.
He recalled how Admiral (R) Fasih Bokhari had written a letter to Asif Zardari, expressing his fears about how rigging was being carried out and major media houses were to be given tax concessions.
Online adds: Meanwhile, Imran Khan said that he had always stated that all parties should join PTI’s Azadi March to protest the massive rigging in May 2013 elections.In a statement, he demanded resignation of Nawaz Sharif and re-elections. In this context Imran Khan welcomed the decision of PAT’s Chairman Tahirul Qadri who is also staging protest and march with PTI on August 14.
Khan reiterated that PTI had already asked all democratic forces to join the movement for strengthening democracy and getting rid of the current “Badshahi Nizam” of the Sharif family.PTI chairman reiterated that PTI’s Azadi March would be peaceful and within the Constitution.He said that PTI would never support any extra-constitutional measure and would hold the government solely responsible for any derailment of democracy.
Addressing a news conference, Imran Khan stressed that his party did not believe that martial law was the solution to Pakistan’s problems.Imran ruled out the possibility of imposition of martial law in the wake of proposed Azadi March and said those who believed the martial law was the solution to Pakistan’s problems wanted to take the nation towards destruction. He said they wanted to strengthen democracy and insisted there was a need to learn from mistakes instead of repeating them again.
Imran alleged that Justice Ramday, Najam Sethi and Justice Riaz Kayani were the key players of the poll match fixing.Among other things, Imran also referred to the regularisation of one lakh employees of the Punjab Education Department just before the elections, who always perform election duties.
The PTI chief charged that the PML-N had appointed its own empires to rig the electoral process. He said after their tsunami in 2013, the ruling party got angry with the PTI and Justice Kayani got posted Mehbood Anwar as ElectionCommissioner, Punjab after transferring him from Karachi as then Punjab election commissioner declined to listen to him.
In the meantime, he said the bureaucracy informed him about the fixing of the match and he also had full confidence for whom the chief justice was playing a role. About the alleged role of Ramday, Imran charged that Ramday arranged a function, wherein key returning officers were invited and it was chaired by the then chief justice.
In the same function, Imran alleged, an election cell was established. The third player was Sethi, who made important postings and transfers and also got printed additional ballot papers for five major Punjab divisions and the papers were of poor quality. He claimed to have an eye witness the process of the shifting of the ballot papers to the residence of Khawaja Saad Rafique and added the related record could be obtained from the cell phones of the returning officers. He promised to produce the eye witness before the media soon.
Imran charged that through rigging, the PML-N increased its tally of votes from 6.8 million to 15 million and at the last minutes of polling, fake voters were arrested with counterfeit ballot papers.
PTI chief pointed out that the returning officers were not under the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) and noted that from 40-50 thousand votes were found fake in the constituencies, where thumb verification was made. He added ballot papers were transported to the returning officers two days before the elections.
Ramday, he charged, was behind the speech of Nawaz Sharif, who asked the returning officers to ensure his victory, who sped up their work after the speech within minutes and the number of votes was increased manifold. He went on to claim; now an attempt was being made to change the polling record.
He alleged Justice (R) Iftikhar Chaudhry had paid tributes to the returning officers and then immediately after that, he announced to support the PML-N during his Balochistan visit.Imran said after PML-N success, Sethi was rewarded first of all and then Justice Ramday was given one more year against the law and his brother had been rewarded while Nadra Chairman Tariq Malik was harassed, threatened and forced to flee abroad.
He recalled how Admiral (R) Fasih Bokhari had written a letter to Asif Zardari, expressing his fears about how rigging was being carried out and major media houses were to be given tax concessions.
Online adds: Meanwhile, Imran Khan said that he had always stated that all parties should join PTI’s Azadi March to protest the massive rigging in May 2013 elections.In a statement, he demanded resignation of Nawaz Sharif and re-elections. In this context Imran Khan welcomed the decision of PAT’s Chairman Tahirul Qadri who is also staging protest and march with PTI on August 14.
Khan reiterated that PTI had already asked all democratic forces to join the movement for strengthening democracy and getting rid of the current “Badshahi Nizam” of the Sharif family.PTI chairman reiterated that PTI’s Azadi March would be peaceful and within the Constitution.He said that PTI would never support any extra-constitutional measure and would hold the government solely responsible for any derailment of democracy.
