Islamabad: Pakistan Peoples’ Party yesterday responded to JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman’s recent reservations about holding elections during what he described as a worsening security situation by suggesting that opposition to polls stemmed from a “fear of the public’s verdict”.

PPP Secretary Information Faisal Kareem Kundi’s statement follows the JUI-F chief’s recent statement on the feasibility of holding elections amid a “deteriorating” security situation. This isn’t the first instance of Rehman expressing reservations about the prospect of polls.

During a rally in Larkana last week, he emphasised his party’s readiness for elections but underscored the necessity of a “peaceful environment” to ensure voters’ safety while exercising their right to franchise. In response to the JUI-F chief’s remarks, Kundi expressed surprise, stating: “Maulana has a government in the KP and we have no idea what feasible environment he is looking for.” Kundi was referring to the KP governor, Haji Ghulam Ali, being a relative of Maulana Fazl.

He added: “People who fear the verdict from the public court do not want elections to take place.” Kundi recalled the PPP’s opposition to election delays even after the assassination of former premier Benazir Bhutto in 2007. “The PPP competed against terrorists and their supporters in the 2013 and 2018 elections,” he said.

Asserting that elections are the sole remedy for the country’s current issues, he remarked that the nation “believes that the chief justice will ensure elections on time” and claimed that opponents fear the popularity of PPP Chairperson Bilawal Bhutto Zardari. Separately, PPP Senator Raza Rabbani issued a statement in which he asserted that general election should be held on the scheduled date. However, he did not directly refer to the remarks made by the JUI-F chief.

“The Supreme Court has ruled that it is a continuous constitutional violation, which cannot be perpetuated,” he said while referring to a delay in the polls. “Any further delay will give rise to a new constitutional violation, as the new parliamentary year of the Senate commences on March 12, 2024, before that half of the Senate will retire,” Rabbani said.

“If the electoral college of the provincial assemblies and the National Assembly is not elected, the Senate will be dysfunctional from March 12, 2024. In such circumstances there will be no Parliament which will be in violation of the Constitution,” he said.

Published in The Daily National Courier, December, 07 2023

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