Karachi, July 24, 2021 (PPI-OT):The Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari has called upon the Azad Kashmir Election Commission (EC) to ensure free and fair elections in the valley so as to prevent the elections being held tomorrow from being declared as the most controversial elections in history. The visit of the sitting Prime Minister Imran Khan to the valley can never be justified as lawful. His visit was the sheer manifestation of the PTI governments absolute disregard for the writ of the Azad Kashmir EC, he said.
The PPP Chairman claimed that the PPP was the only political party that has been able to sweep the elections in Azad Kashmir, provided that the EC ensures free and fair elections. As far as the other political parties are concerned, they have all occupied power by overriding the will of the people through back door deals.
Bilawal Bhutto Zardari expressed these views while addressing a press conference in Karachi. He was flanked by Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah, Sindh Ministers Nasir Hussain Shah, Saeed Ghani, and Special Assistant to Sindh CM Waqar Mehdi, and Sindh CM’s Advisor Barrister Murtaza Wahab.
The PPP simply wants free, fair and transparent elections in the country, a long standing demand of the party from before the 2018 general elections. There is no doubt that if the elections are held in a free, fair and transparent manner, no party other than the PPP could form a government in the valley.
The PPP Chairman said that the PPP is the only party to have worked for the people of Kashmir since it’s inception, and has so far not only served the people of Azad Kashmir but has also it has been a consistent policy of the party to oppose the barbarianism by the Indian government against the people of Indian occupied Kashmir. The struggle of the Kashmiri people, is our struggle and we have always been the loudest voice on the plight of the Kashmiri people.
Unfortunately, the PTI-led federal government is resorting to all sorts of reprehensible tactics to usurp the will of the people of Azad Kashmir in the elections. The worlds eyes will be on the elections of Azad Kashmir and any hint of rigging will be used to weaken the case of Pakistan’s just stance on Kashmir.
The PPP chairman demanded the Azad Kashmir EC exercise its powers and save the electoral process from being declared the most controversial elections in history. Sadly, federal cabinet ministers have been given free rein to campaign in every nook and cranny of the valley. To add insult to injury they have been exposed, live on TV, trying to bribe the people of the valley to cast their votes in PTI’s favour.
Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said that if the Election Commission of Azad Kashmir fails to initiate the necessary legal action against those ministers and candidates involved attempting to bribe the people of Kashmir, and doesn’t declare them as disqualified then the elections will be seen as extremely controversial.
The PPP chairman said that Azad Kashmir EC should use its powers to protect its institution and safeguard the elections from being the most controversial elections in the valleys history. The Minister in question has also been caught on camera firing his weapon to intimidate and pressurize voters, and having such scenes mar the elections will allow India to manipulate global perception of Pakistan’s stance on Kashmir.
Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said that the ongoing Kashmir crisis had inflicted irreparable and colossal damage to the historical Kashmir cause. Both the sitting governments in Pakistan and in Azad Kashmir have left the people of Kashmir helpless.
The PPP chairman said that whenever the people of Azad Kashmir get a chance to give voice to their mandate in the general elections, they have only chosen the PPP to lead them. And irregardless of the outcome tomorrow, all parties should promise that they will immediately focused on legislation in Parliament to enable elections in the valley being conducted simultaneously with the general elections across the country.
Responding to a statement on the proposed referendum in Azad Kashmir, Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said that his party has always been of the view that the people of Azad Kashmir should decide their future. It is very unfortunate that the Prime Minister Imran Khan always makes blunders whenever he speaks on Kashmir. He is obsessed with the idea that he is the master of all trades, but he is soon brought down to reality and he is made to eat his words and make U-turns.
The PM believes that he can barter the will of the Kashmiri people for money. He thinks that a people that have not bowed to tyranny will sell their will for a pittance. The PM is gravely mistaken. If the PM of Pakistan speaks about the referendum in Kashmir, it carries a weight and has consequences. If he talks of a referendum as per the UN charter, it would have been fine, but if his statement ends up strengthening the position of Indian Premier Modi, then it would be wiser for him to remain silent.
To a question, the PPP chairman said that some people were trying to create a misconception that national security agencies were interfering in the elections in Azad Kashmir elections. However, he said, he does not feel it could be, because they of all people know what the repercussions could be next.
One of the candidates from the PTI has claimed that he has the backing of national security agencies, and that they decided about who would contest the elections in Azad Kashmir. It is the constitutional responsibility of Azad Kashmir EC to hold him answerable and immediately declare him as disqualified.
Bilawal Bhutto Zardari while responding to another said that whenever he travelled abroad especially the United States of America, his rivals get upset. They are the elements that always entered the power corridors through rigging and they feel conspiracy everywhere. Pakistan’s relations with the United States and Europe are not as good as they should be.
For more information, contact:
PPP Media Cell (Sindh)
Pakistan People’s Party (PPP)
Peoples Secretariat Shikarpur Colony,
Behind Mazar-e-Quaid-e-Azam, Karachi, Pakistan
Cell: +92-305-3370383
Email: contact@ppp-tu.com
Website: https://www.ppp.org.pk