ANP rejects results of general elections

PESHAWAR: The Awami National Party (ANP) on Sunday rejected the results of the February 8 general elections and alleged that the establishment engineered the polls to install its ‘blue-eyed’ boys in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Addressing a news conference at the Bacha Khan Markaz here after consulting the party candidates, ANP provincial president Aimal Wali Khan said his party totally rejected the results of general elections in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and would launch a protest movement if the stamped ballot papers in all constituencies were not recounted in the presence of the national media.

Aimal Wali Khan was flanked by ANP senior leadership including, Ghulam Ahmad Bilour, Mian Iftikhar Hussain, Senator Hidayatullah, Zahid Khan and ANP candidates who had contested for National Assembly and KP Assembly seats on the party tickets. A number of party workers were also present on the occasion.

“We had done a vigorous election campaign and our candidates were leading on the election day but certain forces changed the results in favour of their favorite candidates at night,” he alleged and warned that the ANP would no longer remain silent and would not make any compromise with those who had played this dirty game.

The ANP leader termed the February 8 polls as the worst of its kind in the history of the country and blamed the establishment for the same.

Aimal Wali Khan said the ANP had made compromises for the last 20 years for the sake of peace on our soil, the rule of law and democracy but the party could no longer be deceived. He said the ANP would utilize and expedite its efforts for provincial rights, peace and prosperity of our people and soil.

Aimal Wali condemned the firing on the “peaceful” protesters of the National Democratic Movement in North Waziristan where at least three people were killed and more than a dozen, including party chief Mohsin Dawar, were injured.

To a question, the ANP leader said the institutions such as judiciary and election commission had already been paralyzed and his party would not approach any courts.

“We will wait for our demands for recounting of all stamped ballot papers to be met,” he added.

Aimal Wali said accepting defeat or congratulating rival candidates by some ANP leaders were their individual acts and should not be deemed as the party policy.

“We totally reject the results of February 8 polls and invite all anti-establishment and pro-nation forces to join us for real democracy in the country,” he said.

He added that there was a huge difference between the stands of the PTI and ANP on the establishment. “Their [PTI] stand is to grab power and ours is genuine democracy in the country,” the ANP leader explained and said almost all nationalist and genuine leadership of the country had once again been kept out of the Parliament under a pre-planned conspiracy.