Maryam Nawaz refuses to accept PoK poll results after PTI sweeps violence-marred elections

Islamabad [Pakistan], July 26 (ANI): Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N) Vice-President Maryam Nawaz has outrightly refused to accept the results (preliminary) of the Pakistan-occupied Kashmir Legislative Assembly polls as Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) swept the polls in the early hours of Monday.

The PoK assembly has a total of 53 members but only 45 are directly elected. According to the unofficial results cited by Geo News, PTI won by a simple majority of 24 seats. Unofficial results showed eight seats in Pakistan Peoples Party’s (PPP) favour and six in Pakistan Muslim League (PML-N). Meanwhile, the Jammu and Kashmir People’s Party (JKPP) and the All Jammu and Kashmir Muslim Conference (AJKMC) secured one seat each.

Taking to Twitter, PML-N Vice-President said that her party fought hard but it is not easy to deal with fraud. “I have not accepted the results and will not. I have not even acknowledged the results of this fake government. Congratulations to the workers and voters. What will be the course of action on this shameless fraud, the party will decide soon, God willing,” Maryam tweeted. “PML-N has fought a very good election, has fought hard. It is not easy to deal with all the centers of state and power and fraud. I would like to commend all the voters and workers of PML-N for their courage and bravery. I am very proud of them,” she said in a subsequent tweet.

Soon after the polling ended at 5 pm, opposition parties accused the PTI-led government of “rigging” the elections. PPP’s vice-president Senator Sherry Rehman had blamed the Centre for “systematic rigging” and said it was attempting to “steal” the elections. The PPP leader alleged PTI workers had fired on a PPP worker’s car during polling time, while police had uprooted a camp belonging to her party.

PML-N spokesperson Marriyum Aurangzeb in a statement said that PTI “goons” had attacked her party’s workers in Gujranwala’s Alipur Chatha area to “rig” the election. Aurangzeb said despite PTI workers beating up her party workers, the police “arrested those associated with PML-N”. “PTI has been allowed to engage in hooliganism with complete liberty,” she said.

Last year, India had criticized Pakistan’s decision to hold elections in the Legislative Assembly election in occupied Gilgit-Baltistan. New Delhi has maintained that any action to alter the status of the militarily occupied region has no legal basis. The main opposition parties had termed the occupied Gilgit-Baltistan election rigged. (ANI)