JI seeks CEC to cancel Karachi mayor election, demands fresh poll

KARACHI: Jamaat Islami has demanded of the Chief Election Commissioner to declare the mayoral election in Karachi as void and issue a new schedule, ARY News reported on Thursday.

“The Sindh government abducted 29 PTI council members to restrain them from casting vote in the election,” JI spokesperson, wrote in a letter to the CEC.

“The election commission should cancel this ‘fraud exercise’ and issue a new schedule for polls,” JI letter read.

“It is prime objective of the election commission to hold fair and transparent election, but the electoral body was utterly failed in it,” according to the letter.

“We intimated the electoral body about unconstitutional and undemocratic steps of the Sindh government, but the ECP remained a silent spectator,” JI letter read.

“The doors of the hall were closed at the time of the mayor’s election, while 29 PTI members were stopped from casting vote after abducting them from homes,” JI spokesperson complained in letter.

“It would have prudent to initiate polling after completion of attendance, unfortunately it didn’t happen. The election commission didn’t play its due role and the mandate was killed ruthlessly,” letter read.

“The majority was turned into minority and a true mandate was encroached forcefully with betrayal,” JI said.

“This encroachment of the mandate will not be better for the city and the country,” JI warned.

Pakistan People’s Party’s (PPP) Barrister Murtaza Wahab elected Karachi mayor after securing 173 through a show of hand, according to unofficial and unconfirmed results.

JI’s candidate Hafiz Naeem ur Rehman secured 160 votes, as per the unconfirmed and unofficial results.