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Tag: ECP

  • Rana Sanaullah warns PTI again after Imran says party is all ready for long march

    Rana Sanaullah warns PTI again after Imran says party is all ready for long march

    Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah has warned Chairman of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), Imran Khan, again that the federal government will respond with “full force” if he announces a long march and enters Islamabad.

    On Monday, the federal minister said that Khan has started the culture of bringing huge crowds out on the streets, but the government knows how to end it.

    Speaking about the by-elections in which PTI won the majority of the seats, Sanauallah said that while the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has “responsibly carried out its job in the by-polls”, Khan was busy “spreading propaganda against the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC).”

    Rana Sanaullah revealed that Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) supremo Nawaz Sharif will lead his party’s next election campaign.

    Despite the warning, the PTI chief said the long march will be announced within this month. He told the federal government to announce a date for general elections in a few days or else the long march date will be announced. Imran Khan stressed that all preparations for the long march have been completed.

    Last week, Sanaullah warned Khan about his party’s long march, saying, “Jab yeh long march ke liye aayeinge [Islamabad], iss ko pakar kar ulta kardeinge” (We will hang Khan upside down if he takes his long march into Islamabad).

    The federal minister also said that there is a possibility of Khan and other party leaders being arrested during the long march.

  • Man threatens to murder Maryam Nawaz if Khan gets arrested

    Man threatens to murder Maryam Nawaz if Khan gets arrested

    Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader Talal Chaudhry posted a video on his Twitter handle in which a man can be heard giving threatening remarks about the PML-N Vice President Maryam Nawaz who is currently in London.

    He said that he has told his family that he would murder Maryam if Khan was illegally arrested.

    The man said that he would prefer to remain a worker and did not want any post in the party. However, he said that he would not like anything illegal done to Imran Khan.

    Surprisingly, when the man was passing these remarks, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader and former National Assembly (NA) Deputy Speaker Qasim Suri was sitting there, smiling.

    Talal Chaudhry took to Twitter to blame Khan for the threats. “After losing by-elections in NA-108, where Imran Khan himself was a candidate, they are issuing threats now.”

    Chaudhry also urged the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) and police to take action against the threats.

  • FIA books Imran Khan and others in ‘prohibited funding’ case

    FIA books Imran Khan and others in ‘prohibited funding’ case

    The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has booked Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan and other party leaders in a case pertaining to their party allegedly receiving prohibited funding.

    The case was filed by the state through FIA’s Corporate Banking Circle in Islamabad.

    In the First Information Report (FIR), the federal agency alleged that Abraaj Group transferred $2,100,000 to PTI account. In addition, the FIR states that the party received more financing from two bank accounts of Wotan Cricket Club.

    The complaint named Imran Khan, Sardar Azhar Tariq Khan, Saifullah Khan Nyazee, Syed Yunus Ali Raza, Aamer Mehmood Kiani, Tariq Rahim Sheikh, Tariq Shafi, Faisal Maqbool Shaikh, Hamid Zaman and Manzoor Ahmad Chaudhary as signatories/beneficiaries of the PTI account in question.

    The FIR alleged the branch’s operations manager had also failed to report these illegal transactions to the concerned authorities.

    In August, the ECP issued its verdict in the prohibited funding case — previously referred to as the foreign funding case — against the PTI, which stated that the party did indeed receive prohibited funding.

    The ECP said that the party, in violation of the Constitution, had received funds from 34 foreign entities. The party received funds from the United States, Australia, and the UAE. The ECP added that 13 unidentified accounts also surfaced during the probe in the PTI funding case.

  • Chief Justice calls lifetime disqualification under Article 62(1)(f) a ‘draconian law’

    Chief Justice of Pakistan, (CJP) Umar Ata Bandial, has termed the lifetime disqualification of politicians under Article 62(1)(f) of the Constitution a “Draconian law”.

    “Article 62 (1)(f) is a draconian law and we will hear this case with caution and in detail,” the CJP remarked while hearing Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Faisal Vawda’s appeal against his disqualification for life under the article.

    According to Article 62(1)(f), a person shall not be qualified to be elected or chosen as a member of Majlis-e-Shoora (Parliament) “unless — he is sagacious, righteous, non-profligate, honest and ameen, there being no declaration to the contrary by a court of law”.

    The Article was previously used to disqualify Nawaz Sharif, the three-time former Prime Minister whose party is now holding power in the federal capital. Former PTI leader Jahangir Khan Tareen was also disqualified for life under the same article.

    Vawda had appealed to the top court to set aside the order of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) and the Islamabad High Court (IHC) in which he was handed out a lifetime disqualification.

    In February, ECP disqualified Vawda for hiding his United States (US) citizenship. Later, he approached Islamabad High Court (IHC), seeking the revocation of his lifetime disqualification, however, the court dismissed Vawda’s plea.

    Vawda has pleaded to Supreme Court that the ECP had cited no reason for invoking Article 62(1)(f) of the Constitution to disqualify him for life. The commission appears to be under the impression that any person disqualified under Article 63(1)(c) — for having dual nationality — could automatically be penalised under Article 62(1)(f), he said.

    During the hearing on Tuesday (today), the CJP said, “The election commission has the right to investigate a false affidavit.”

    “Even if we set aside the ECP’s verdict, the facts will remain the same,” he added.

    “The question is whether or not the ECP can order disqualification for life,” Justice Bandial said.

    The hearing was later adjourned till October 6 (Thursday).

    It is pertinent to mention that in 2018 the Supreme Court declared that the disqualification under 62(1)(f) would be for life.

    Under this same article, both Nawaz Sharif and Imran Khan’s former close aide Tareen are currently disqualified for life.

  • ‘Jhoot mein bolna nahi chahta, sach mein bol nahi sakta’: Imran Khan avoids confirming his meeting with COAS Bajwa

    Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan responded to speculation about his meeting with the Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa, as was reported by some journalists recently.

    On ARY News’ programme “Sawal Yeh Hai” with Maria Memon, when asked about the meeting, he said, “Jhoot mein bolna nahi chahta, sach mei bol nahi sakta”, (I don’t want to lie and I can’t tell the truth). However, he was of the view that negotiations should be held.

    Earlier, there was speculation that Khan had a meeting with COAS last month. The meeting was arranged by President Arif Alvi and was held at the President’s House in Islamabad. Reportedly, Khan and the COAS could not reach an agreement, but Khan toned down his rhetoric pertaining to the establishment after the meeting.

    About his recent audio leaks, Khan revealed that the first audio leak between him and his then-principle secretary Azam Khan was a telephonic conversation. According to him, he hasn’t listened to the second audio leak. “I can’t comment on it”, he responded.

    However, when asked that in this second audio leak he [Khan] insisted his party members use the word “letter” instead of “cipher”, the PTI Chairman said that there is nothing wrong with it as the general public wouldn’t have been able to understand the word cipher.

    About the controversial cipher, Khan said he had not made the cipher public at once because at the time, the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) meeting was in progress in the capital and it would have been inappropriate to share the cipher then.

    He said that these leaks are a security breach as the secure line Prime Minister’s (PM) Office got leaked.

    During the interview, Khan said that he is always ready to be arrested. “These people don’t have democracy and morality in them”, he added.

    According to the former PM, when he gets disqualified, the government will hold elections.

    He termed his Toshkhana case as “open and shut”. He said he did nothing wrong in the case which is pending against him in the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP.)

    It is pertinent to mention here that Khan is accused of selling state gifts and failing to disclose their value in his annual tax returns.

    Speaking about the upcoming long march, Khan said the date would be announced within a week. He said Punjab Chief Minister (CM) Pervaiz Elahi is an ally of the PTI and he would support the party in its march.

    About the departure of for­­mer premier Nawaz Sha­rif to London during the PTI government on medical grounds, Imran Khan commented that when Nawaz Sharif went out of the country, he came to realise that “Everything is possible” in Pakistan.

    “Unfortu­na­tely our justice system is weak due to which these people are benefitting,” he said in a comment on the cases agai­nst his political opponents.

  • Trouble for IK as ECP imposes fine on him for holding jalsa in Peshawar

    Trouble for IK as ECP imposes fine on him for holding jalsa in Peshawar

    The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has imposed a fine of Rs.50,000 on Chairman Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Imran Khan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Chief Minister (CM) Mahmood Khan, and other party leaders.

    The fine was imposed on them for violating the code of conduct issued for the upcoming by-elections by participating in a rally in Peshawar despite the commission’s warning.

    On September 6, PTI held a rally in the provincial capital Immediately after Imran’s arrival on stage, YouTube’s access in the country appeared blocked or greatly slowed down.

    Following the violation, District Monitoring Officer (DMO), Peshawar, Shahabuddin, had served notices to Khan, the Chief Minister and others, seeking an explanation. They appeared before the DMO and submitted written replies.

    However, the DMO deemed the reply unsatisfactory and imposed a fine of Rs50,000 on each of the leaders, directing them to deposit the fine to the state exchequer by September 18.

    It is pertinent to mention that a day before the Peshawar rally, the DMO had asked PTI not to attend the rally and warned of legal action.

    Another PTI rally is scheduled to be held in Charsadda on September 17 and for that, the commission sent letters to the KP governor and chief minister asking them not to attend it.

    This is not the first time that a fine has been imposed on PTI leaders. In March, ECP slapped a fine of Rs50,000 on Imran Khan, CM Mahmood Khan, Shah Mahmood Qureshi and others for violating the code of conduct as they all attended a public gathering in Swat on March 16 ahead of the no-confidence motion.

  • ‘Kaptaan dar gaya, bhaag gaya’: Bilawal takes jibe at IK over PTI member withdrawal from by-election

    ‘Kaptaan dar gaya, bhaag gaya’: Bilawal takes jibe at IK over PTI member withdrawal from by-election

    Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Chairperson and the incumbent Foreign Minister (FM) Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari took a jibe at Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan.

    Reacting to the PTI candidate Shakoor Shad’s resignation for NA-246, the PPP chairperson said, “IK running away from by-elections. Kaptaan dar gaya, Kaptaan bhagaya”. (Imran Khan is scared, he has run away.)

    Bhutto took to Twitter and termed the Election Commission of Pakistan’s (ECP) postponement act as “special treatment” for Khan.

    In his tweet, Bilawal asked, “How long will Khan remain a favourite”, adding that PPP candidates from Multan and Karachi are frustrated by the sudden postponement of the by-elections in constituencies of Sindh and Punjab.

    Replying to him, PTI’s Meher Bano Qureshi accused Bhutto’s party of the postponement.

    “We aren’t the ones running away. Let’s go to the polls on the 11th as scheduled. Your government put in a request for the postponement. Maybe check with the allies before tweeting”, she said. Qureshi is contesting the by-elections from NA-157, Multan.

    PPP’s Syed Ali Musa Gillani also took to Twitter to express his reservation over the postponement. He said, “We are all set for the election on Sunday. This decision of ECP will not be acceptable. It is against the constitution. The people of the constituency must not be deprived of their representation. Polling staff has been nominated stations finalised.”

    “We will challenge if any notification is issued in this regard, delaying the election last minute”, he added.

    Gillani, son of former Prime Minister (PM) Yousaf Raza Gillani, is contesting against Meher Bano Qureshi, the daughter of former Foreign Minister (FM) Shah Mahmood Qureshi, on NA-157 in Multan.

    Earlier, the ECP announced its decision to postpone the by-election in 13 constituencies. The by-elections were set to be held on September 11, September 25, and October 2.

    By-elections on nine seats of the National Assembly were scheduled to be held on September 25, with Imran Khan contesting on all of them as PTI’s candidate.

    ECP has said that the decision to postpone the by-elections had been taken after getting feedback from the Ministry of Interior according to which Pakistan Army, Rangers, and the Frontier Corps are engaged in relief work for the flood-affected people, maintaining internal security, and thwarting out terrorist activities in the country.

  • ‘Jis ne Nawaz Sharif ko vote deeya, woh Allah ke farman ke khilaf jayega’: Imran Khan

    ‘Jis ne Nawaz Sharif ko vote deeya, woh Allah ke farman ke khilaf jayega’: Imran Khan

    Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan, addressing a rally in Chishtian, said, “Agar ap ne Nawaz Sharif ko vote toh matlab ap mujrim ko vote de rahy hai. Is ka matlab ap burai ke sath khary hai. Is ka matlab ke ap Allah ke farman ke khilaf ja rahy hai.” (People who vote for PML-N leader Nawaz Sharif will be siding with a convict and are on the wrong side. This also means that you will go against Allah’s orders.)

    This is not the first time that PTI leader has played religious card against opponents or has mentioned religion in his speeches.

    Another time, while addressing his supporters, he said “You have to spread my message to the public just like the prophets of Allah did”.

    The former prime minister once also said that those who defected from his party [PTI] committed shirk. Shirk, or infidelity to God, is considered a severe sin in Islam.

    “Those who do wrong things to save their jobs commit sin, it is shirk [idolatry]. Those who sell their self-respect and themselves, it is also counted as shirk because Allah is Al-Haqq”, he said.

    Moreover, in Chishtian, the PTI leader said Chishtian is not a stronghold of the PML-N as it claims.

    “We make the country’s biggest robbers prime ministers. Today, the people ruling the country have been robbing the country for 30 years,” he reiterated.

    He once again accused the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) and said that the body is a “Pet of the coalition government”.

    Clarifying his earlier remarks against the Pakistan Army, Khan said that “this country is mine and so is the army”.

  • Toshakhana case: ECP directs Khan to submit reply by Sept 7

    The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) directed Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan on Monday to submit his reply in the Toshakhana case against him by September 7.

    Barrister Gohar Ali Khan, the counsel for the PTI chairman, appeared before an ECP bench headed by Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Sikandar Sultan Raja and appealed for some more time to file a reply.

    He said that Khan’s lead counsel Barrister Ali Zafar is in Lahore, which is why he was unable to consult with him regarding the case. He assured the ECP bench of submitting a reply at the next hearing.

    The CEC observed that since everything was part of the record, it must not take so much time to submit a reply.

    However, the bench granted a week’s time to the PTI chief and the hearing was adjourned till September 7.

    Earlier this month, National Assembly (NA) Speaker Raja Pervaiz Ashraf sent a reference to the ECP seeking Imran Khan’s disqualification. In the reference, it was stated that Khan did not declare the gifts taken from Toshakhana in his assets and the detail of the amount he had received by selling those state gifts.

    In April, an investigation by news organisation Fact Focus revealed that Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi kept all 112 presents worth Rs142.02 million from the Toshakhana of Pakistan.

  • Bushra Bibi has no jewellery: Khan provides asset details to ECP

    Bushra Bibi has no jewellery: Khan provides asset details to ECP

    Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan on Monday, August 15, declared his wife Bushra Bibi’s and all his assets in the nomination papers to contest the by-elections from Faisalabad constituency NA-108, reports Geo News.

    Providing details to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), Khan revealed that his assets are more than Rs304.2 million.

    According to the news outlet, Khan declared two inherited houses and 228 kanals of land in the Bhakkar district. He also owns a flat and a commercial plot on Constitution Avenue in Islamabad from which he is receiving Rs1.4 million as rent. He has four bank accounts, but no investment in any company. He showed Rs11.22 million cash in hand. Khan has four goats worth Rs0.2 million.

    Declaring his wife Bushra Bibi’s assets, he revealed that she has 698 kanals of land in Pakpattan and Okara. As per the nomination papers, a three-kanal house in Bani Gala is in the name of his wife, and that she has no jewellery.

    Khan declared that he spent Rs48.66 million on the construction of the Zaman Park house, and spent Rs4.9 million on additional constructions in Bani Gala. In the nomination papers, Khan did not mention details of his children.