Death threats: CEC names who to hold responsible, records statement

ISLAMABAD: Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Sikandar Sultan Raja is receiving serious threats and he has recorded a statement to be made public in case of any untoward situation, The News has learnt.

In the statement, he has named the individual to be held responsible in case of any harm caused to him or members of his family.

Federal government has beefed up his security. A bulletproof vehicle has been provided to him keeping in view the nature of threats. This has been done in line with the demand made by the Secretary Election Commission of Pakistan who apprised through a letter to the Interior Secretary of the gravity of the situation.

Unusual movement of the suspicious persons have been noted in the ECP building and in the vicinity of the residence of the CEC. Threatening calls to Sikandar Sultan Raja and the members of his family are also being made from overseas numbers. The same trend has also been observed on social media where anonymous twitter handles are being used for this purpose.

A source in the ECP said that Sikandar Sultan Raja is undeterred by life threats, however, concern about the safety of the members of his family has remained his prime concern. “Such tactics notwithstanding, Raja has shown the firm resolve to carry out his duties with full honesty,” the source said. Other than his family, he is equally concerned about the well-being of the ECP members who are also being pressured by different stakeholders.

In a letter sent two months ago to the Interior Secretary, the ECP Secretary blamed PTI leadership for hurling threats. “Recently, an alarming trend has emerged where certain political parties have been found encouraging their workers to assemble and agitate in front of the Election Commission Secretariat. Noticeably, Imran Khan, PTI Chairman has been hurling threats along with his key leaders since sometime and now these have become more pointed, thus raising the risk manifold,” his letter reads.

As the time to announce the verdict on foreign funding nears, propaganda machinery has accelerated the campaign against Sikandar Sultan Raja. While anonymous callers and twitter handles are issuing murder threats, Punjab Assembly late Sunday adopted a resolution criticising the ECP and demanding the CEC and other members to resign to pave way for the formation of an “uncontroversial and acceptable” poll body for fair elections. This is despite the fact that PTI won 15 seats in by-elections held on July 17 due to the fair polls conducted under the watch of the current ECP administration.

Imran Khan has announced a demonstration against the ECP in front of the ECP building on Thursday. In a tweet on Monday, the PTI Secretary General Asad Umar, addressing the party youth, said that since ECP was working like a political party instead of acting like a neutral body, please suggest whether the ECP should be registered as a political party and what should be its electoral symbol.