PTI Protest: Today at 12 pm, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) plans to protest across the country against what they claim is cheating and reducing their votes in the February 8 elections.
After the unofficial results of the general elections came out, many political parties started protesting. The parties that won the most seats began searching for allies to form governments in the country and provinces.
The PTI expressed disappointment with the results. They won over 90 seats in the National Assembly but believe that cheating affected their overall results. They announced peaceful protests nationwide to denounce what they call significant cheating in the recent general elections.
“The PTI is protesting across the country against the massive cheating in the 2024 general elections. Despite winning 180 seats and having a two-thirds majority, our victory was unfairly reduced,” the party stated.
Yesterday, in Islamabad, the party held a press conference and showed Form 45 documents to point out differences with Form 47, claiming that the electoral process was rigged.
PTI spokesperson Raoof Hasan stated that the 2024 elections would be remembered for their scale of rigging. He mentioned discrepancies where candidates who were initially winning, as per Form 45 collected from polling stations, were later declared as runners-up according to Form 47, which consolidates the results.
There was a significant difference in the votes counted for national and provincial assembly seats, Hasan claimed.
However, PTI isn’t the only party expressing concerns about the February 8 elections. Other parties like Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F), Grand Democratic Alliance (GDA), and others have also complained about rigging.
Before the PTI’s protests, authorities issued two threat alerts due to terrorism threats from specific banned groups.
The Islamabad Police Inspector General, Dr. Akbar Nasir Khan, emphasized that no one would be allowed to assemble or protest unlawfully in the federal capital.
There’s been an increase in the presence of Punjab Rangers to handle any potential situations in the city.
It’s been reported that Police Order 2002 is in effect in Islamabad, meaning no gatherings or activities will be permitted without prior permission from the police or administration.
The Islamabad police have informed all political parties about Section 144 being imposed in the city. They’ve cautioned that strict legal action will be taken against anyone who doesn’t follow security instructions. Additionally, they’ve advised women and individuals under 18 years old to avoid going to F-9 park and F-6 areas from 10 am to 1 pm.
Read more about “Imran Khan, while in jail, asks for help from the United States to stop election rigging.”