Parliamentary panel formed to probe election rigging

ISLAMABAD: The National Assembly on Tuesday passed a motion to constitute a Special Parliamentary Committee to finalise Terms of Reference (ToR) and made recommendations to investigate into the allegations of rigging in the General Elections 2018.

MNA Advocate Muhammad Ali moved the motion to give mandate to the committee for recommending investigation procedure into alleged rigging in the general elections 2018.

Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi said that government and opposition parties have agreed to constitute a committee on the basis of equal representation. He said it was also agreed that the chairman of the committee will be nominated by the prime minister after the consultation.

He said it was also agreed that only member of the National Assembly will be member of the committee. Qureshi thanked the opposition parties for extending cooperation for the constitution of the committee.

He said, “we do not want to keep anything hidden. It is the opposition’s rights to protest and their reservations have been registered.”

Qureshi said, “transparent elections are imperative for democracy.” Further, he assured the House that the commission will be empowered.

“We have to move forward despite our differences,” he asserted. Shah Mahmood Qureshi said the committee would be fully authorised to carry out its work. He said the PTI had nothing to hide as it believes in strengthening the democratic norms and values.

Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi said that transparency would not be compromised under any circumstances. He said on the first day, Prime Minister Imran Khan was wanting to announce the committee, but it could not be happened due to protest of the opposition.

He said that the government believed that free, fair and transparent elections are imperative for the strengthening the democracy.

He said the goal of both the government and opposition benches is to ensure free and fair election in the country.

Syed Naveed Qamar and Raja Pervaiz Ashraf of Pakistan People’s Party and Khurram Dastgir of PML-N demanded that the head of this committee should be from the Opposition.

Responding to the points of the PPP leader, Minister for Information and Broadcasting Fawad Chaudhry said the committee is being constituted on the special directions of Prime Minister Imran Khan which shows his graciousness.

He said Imran Khan had demanded opening of only four constituencies in the wake of 2013 general elections, but the PTI had to protest for it for four years.

The information minister said that the government had accepted the demand of the opposition for the constitution of the committee.

Minister for Human Rights Shireen Mazari said the opposition benches should not doubt on the intention of the government. Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader Khurram Dastgir expressed similar sentiments and demanded that Leader of the Opposition in the NA should be head of the commission.