'Will not accept Punjab by-polls results if rigging continues'

LAHORE: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Vice Chairman Shah Mehmood Qureshi has termed the upcoming by-elections in Punjab a ‘test’ for Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), saying that the party would not accept the results if rigging continues, ARY News reported on Friday.

Addressing a press conference in Lahore, Shah Mehmood Qureshi said that the by-elections were a test for the electoral watchdog. “We will not accept the results, if rigging took place in the up-coming elections,” he noted.

The former foreign minister noted if Punjab Chief Minister Hamza Shehbaz rigged the elections for few seats then the province would remain politically instable. “The PML-N workers are not satisfied with the party’s candidates for the by-elections. The party should be allotted ‘lota’ symbol,” he added.

The PTI leader further said that the incumbent government has no plans to revive the deteriorating economy. “The present rulers wanted the power to get rid of the corruption cases against him. Their agenda is personal not national,” he noted.

Shah Mehmood Qureshi added that the present government has completely failed to control inflation. He further criticized the federal government for imposing ‘Super Tax’ on industries. “The government is continuously dropping petrol bombs on the people of Pakistan,” he added.

“The government has inked an agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The rate of electricity will be Rs 21 per unit in August, Rs 24 per unit in September and Rs 25 per unit in October,” he added.

A day earlier, the provincial election commissioner sent the probe report to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) after PTI Vice-Chairman Shah Mahmood Qureshi levelled allegations against the election process.

Shah Mahmood Qureshi had levelled allegations against the ECP and the Punjab government over alleged illegal actions ahead of Punjab by-polls.

Sources told ARY News that the EC Punjab levelled allegations against Qureshi for pressurising the returning officer (RO) during scrutiny of the nomination papers in Multan.