Opposition parties end protest outside ECP's Islamabad office

ISLAMABAD: Members of a multi-party opposition alliance on Wednesday ended their protest outside the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) Islamabad office, ARY News reported.

Members of opposition parties including the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), Pakistan People’s Party (PPP), Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal (MMA) and Awami National Party (ANP) protested and raised slogans against the alleged rigging in the July 25 general elections.

Addressing protesters outside the ECP office, PML-N leader Ahsan Iqbal lamented that PTI chief Imran Khan didn’t keep his promise regarding scrutiny in his own constituency NA-131 and approached court to stop recounting.

“We will keep protesting till our grievances are addressed and will continue to expose rigging in the elections and this fake leadership which gained majority in parliament through rigging,” said Iqbal.

JUI-F and MMA chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman also spoke to the protesters and said that people’s mandate has been stolen through rigging in July 25 elections.

It is pertinent to note here that opposition parties during a number of meetings after the polls had decided that they will not boycott parliament but all of their MNAs will support a PML-N nominee for election of prime minister while PPP and MMA candidates will be supported for speaker and deputy speaker slots respectively.

Almost all other parties have been crying foul since Imran Khan-led PTI emerged as the biggest party in the parliament after July 25 elections by winning more than 110 seats out of 270 upon which polls were held.

The party now claims that it has enough MNAs and MPAs to form government both in center and Punjab. The party already has enough MPAs to form government in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.