ISLAMABAD: Former caretaker chief minister of Punjab Najam Sethi has decided to take Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) chief Imran Khan to court over the allegation that the former had committed election fraud in favour of the ruling PML-N.
Yesterday, the head of PTI’s central media cell, Chaudhry Rizwan, confirmed that the party had received the defamation notice delivered on behalf of Sethi.
He said the party’s legal team was going through the notice and a formal response would be given after the expected return of Khan from London on Sunday.
Sethi was not available for his comment.
Early this month, Imran Khan alleged that Sethi had been reappointed Chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) as a reward for manipulating results of the May general elections in favour of the PML-N.
Sethi had reacted to what he described as a blatant accusation and said he would take his accusers to the court.
It all started when the chief of staff to the PTI chief, Naeemul Haq, tweeted about “35 punctures” - an alleged telephonic conversation on election night between the PML-N chief and now Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and Sethi.
During the conversation which, according to Haq, was recorded by the intelligence agency of a powerful country, Sethi was heard saying “he had fixed 35 punctures.”
According to the PTI, Sethi changed election results of 35 National Assembly constituencies from Punjab in favour of the PML-N. A senior PTI leader said that, Sethi’s notice was a blessing in disguise for the party.
A senior PTI leader said that “Sethi’s notice was a blessing in disguise for the party because it would allow us to pursue our claim that May 11 elections were heavily rigged in favour of the current ruling party at the centre and in Punjab.”
For PTI leadership, the leader said, Sethi was a nonentity. However, his overreaction to the accusation proves that there was some element of truth in the alleged recorded call.
“This defamation notice has provided us an opportunity to further whip up the controversy surrounding the 35 punctures,” the leader added.
The PTI has filed 64 petitions in election tribunals challenging the election results. The party had also moved the Supreme Court for verification of thumb impressions of voters in four National Assembly constituencies NA 110, 122, 125 and 154.
All the four constituencies are in Punjab.
Talking in a Television talk show yesterday, Shafqat Mehmood, the only winning candidate of the PTI from Lahore, said the party leadership only wanted re-counting of votes, but the demand was being resisted by using various tactics.
“And this reported story of 35 punctures explains why the rulers of Punjab and of the centre are not interested in verification, “he added.
The PTI is a centrist, nationalist and communitarian political party in Pakistan, which was founded by former Pakistani cricket captain and philanthropist Imran Khan.
INTERNEWS
