JI writes to ECP to postpone filling of local govt reserved seats

The Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) has approached the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) seeking delay in polls on the reserved seats in the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) City Council amid crackdown on the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) — the third largest party and potential coalition partner of the JI for the local government in Karachi.

Karachi JI deputy chief Raja Arif Sultan wrote a letter on Friday to Chief Election Commissioner Sikandar Sultan Raja in this regard. He pointed out that the entire country was going through a political crisis and anarchy, whereas in Karachi, crackdown on the PTI was being fueled by political vengeance.

He said a large number of PTI leaders and workers had gone underground to avoid arrest and victimization and in this scenario, the Pakistan Peoples Party’s (PPP) government in Sindh was forcing the newly elected representatives from the PTI to switch their loyalties in order to install a Jiyala mayor in Karachi through unfair means.

The letter mentioned that the PPP got numbers through pre-poll and post-poll rigging but it was unable to get a majority. As a result, the JI leader wrote, the JI stood first in terms of the total number of votes polled despite all the illegal tactics employed against it. He added that the PTI had secured the second position, whereas the PPP stood third.

Arif said all the leadership of the PTI in Karachi was either under arrest or hiding to avoid arrest and political revenge. Against this backdrop, no one from the PTI would be able to take oath on May 22, and neither the proposers nor seconders belonging to the PTI would be able to appear for scrutiny. The JI asked the ECP to play its role in order to ensure the transparency of this segment of the local government elections and defer the oath taking and elections on reserved seats.