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Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan on Friday urged President Arif Alvi to intervene and stop the “brazen interference of intelligence agencies” in politics.
In an official letter, Khan said the PTI’s core and parliamentary committees had unanimously passed a resolution seeking the president’s “intervention to stop interference in the political process.” According to the letter, the most recent example of this alleged interference was “the KP [Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa] governor’s statement that he cannot give a date for elections to the KP legislature as that would be given by the intelligence agencies and the establishment.”
In this regard, wrote the PTI chief, the resolution has drawn “attention to the brazen acts of abduction, sham FIRs, custodial torture, threats being meted out to PTI workers and leaders. The resolution calls on you to take action against all these actions that contravene the Constitution, the law of the land and fundamental rights.”
The letter, sent to the president by Senator Shibli Faraz, includes a transcript of the KP governor’s press talk in which he had discussed the date for elections. “Conducting elections is not responsibility of the government but that of the Election Commission. Some people are spreading rumors in this regard,” it quotes Governor Haji Ghulam Ali. “In such circumstances, it is not in my exclusive domain to announce elections date or not. It is rather between institutions—establishment, intelligence agencies and other institutions—to report (on feasibility of the situation) and the Election Commission to decide the date. However, I would wish for free, fair and transparent election to be held. But the state itself is facing crises. Other than election, we also have to consider the economic conditions of country,” he continues.
“I have relations with many industrialists, who are also facing the crisis situation; more than elections, they want solution of their issues and I am focusing on them. Since provincial cabinet has been completed, we are now focusing on industrial and trade issues. Free trade of dollar has quickly added Rs. 30 to Rs. 32 to its value. We want (banks) to at least start opening letters of credit. In a short while, the government has to focus on and try fixing and achieving its economic targets,” he adds.
The Punjab and KP assemblies were dissolved on Jan. 14 and Jan. 18, respectively. Constitutionally, they must proceed to elections within 90 days. Last month, the ECP wrote letters to the principal secretaries of the governors of both provinces, urging them to fix dates for polling in Punjab between April 9-13 and between April 15-17 in KP.