Hafiz Naeem ur Rehman, a prominent Pakistani politician who emerged victorious in the provincial elections of Karachi, Pakistan’s commercial hub, has made the unprecedented decision to relinquish his seat, citing electoral manipulation in his favor.
According to Reuters, Pakistan held national and provincial elections on February 8, but the electoral process was overshadowed by allegations of rigging aimed at thwarting independent candidates supported by imprisoned former Prime Minister Imran Khan.
Both the interim government and Pakistan’s election commission have rebuffed these claims, asserting the presence of laws and mechanisms to address specific grievances.
Representing the Islamist Jamaat-e-Islami party, Rehman clinched victory in provincial constituency 129 in Karachi with over 26,000 votes.
However, he divulged that the vote count for Saif Bari, an independent candidate backed by Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, was substantially reduced from 31,000 to 11,000 votes during the tallying of ballots from individual polling stations.
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Imran Khan, presently incarcerated on charges of corruption and other criminal offenses following a falling-out with the influential military establishment, witnessed his PTI being barred from contesting elections, compelling its members to run as independents. Despite allegations, the military denies any interference in the political sphere.
“Public opinion should be respected, let the winner win, let the loser lose, no one should get anything extra,” Rehman told Reuters on Wednesday.
“I will not accept it, the winner should be given the victory.”
Saif Bari remained unreachable for comment, while the PTI stated that it required time to provide a response. The Election Commission did not promptly reply to the request for comment.
