— Tareen quit politics, Siraj steps down as JI chief
— PTI demands CEC’s resignation for ‘massive vote fraud’
ISLAMABAD: Days after the country went to polls, uncertainty continued to loom large on Monday after three well-known political leaders, Istehkam-e-Pakistan Party (IPP) chief Jahangir Khan Tareen and Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) chief Sirajul Haq, made shocking announcements of stepping down from party positions.
Tareen and Khattak also decided to “step away from politics altogether”, while Siraj took responsibility for the party’s significant drubbing in the February 8 national polls.
In a post on X, Tareen said he would like to thank everyone who supported him in the elections and offered his congratulations to his political opponents over their victories.
However, he added that he had “immense respect for the will of the people of Pakistan” and was therefore stepping down.
Similarly, the newly-formed IPP with its core of former PTI leaders, only managed to secure two seats in the National Assembly and only one from Punjab Assembly.
In a separate post on X, Siraj said, “I accept responsibility for the election defeat and have resigned from the post of party ameer.”
The resignation by the Jamaat chief comes after the party failed to secure any National Assembly seats and only secured three seats in the Sindh and Balochistan assemblies, one of which was vacated earlier today by JI Karachi chief Hafiz Naeemur Rehman.
PTI demands CEC’s resignation
The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has demanded the immediate resignation of Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Sikandar Sultan Raja, accusing him of dereliction of his constitutional and legal duties and playing the role of a facilitator in what it termed as ‘poll fraud.’
The PTI further insisted that not only should CEC Raja step down, but the members of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) should also tender their resignations.
It alleged that they colluded to strip PTI-backed candidates of the mandate bestowed upon them by the people in the February 8 general elections, marred by widespread reports of vote rigging.
