PTI marching forward with demos and electoral reforms

The PTI chairman had filed a petition at the Supreme Court seeking ‘verification of thumb impressions’ in NA-110 Sialkot, NA-122 Lahore, NA-125 Lahore and NA 154 Lodhran but he expressed his dissatisfaction over the measures taken to investigate the thumb impression of the voters. On this point he seems logical that over a year has been passed but still thumb impression of the four constituencies have not been done properly then when officials would do it? May be after five years or just before the next general elections? Imran Khan has said it repeatedly addressing rallies that “It’s the duty of Chief Justice and Chief Election Commissioner to listen to the hue and cry of people who believe that results of 25 to 30 constituencies were manipulated. “Listen to the people who are on the roads now. They want fingers prints’ verification in the constituencies where polls were rigged on elections day.”
On the one hand, Imran Khan addressing in big cities of the country and on the other workers of the PTI staging protest demonstration near the Red Zone in Islamabad. PTI activists and police had some scuffles as protesters were trying to reach to ECP building.
Government was on the view that May 11 rally in Islamabad would not leave huge impact and it would be one day show and after it things would return to normal but Imran Khan announced that his party would hold massive public rallies in other cities of the country as well. After the successful public rallies in the heart of PML N, Faisalabad and in Sialkot now waves of PTI tsunami ready to hit Bahawalpur latter this month. Despite of the killing heat waves of June people are attending the rallies of PTI in huge numbers, factor of the electricity load shedding also contributing in gathering the people as they perhaps would be thinking its better to go out and attend the rally rather to sit home with no lights.
With the mounting pressure on the government that Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif moved to introduce consensus electoral reforms and some constitutional amendments to be formulated by a bipartisan parliamentary committee, and provided an opportunity to every political party to provide its input. It was very pleasing news for the supporters of electoral reforms in the country and PTI has played its role in pressurizing the government to take such initiative. This bill was tabled to Parliament in February 2013 but it was never given a serious thought. Over the past one year, none of the political parties in the present Parliament has bothered to take it up for consideration either. The bill, proposed by the ECP under the then Chief Election Commissioner Fakhruddin G Ebrahim, had mainly sought the empowerment of the ECP to hold elections in a free, fair and independent manner. Although PTI has been successful in conducting big public gatherings but party has not taken any solid measure inside the National Assembly to bring neither electoral reforms nor it has tabled any legislation.
Different political parties including the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) have endorsed the PTI’s demand but they want to address the issue within the Parliament instead of taking to the streets. In the last general elections almost all the political parties were showing reservations for the riggings in the polls. Therefore, all of the parties must be satisfied with the electoral reforms as strong democratic process is hidden in the strong, powerful and independent election commission.
Imran Khan has also demanded not only seeks reformation of the electoral process but has also demanded removal of all members of the present Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), which seems a little too much. Although earlier PTI has postponed the public gatherings in Bahawalpur but Imran Khan addressing a press conference after the incident of police brutality in Lahore over the activists of Pakistan Awami Tehreek, announced the continuation of public gatherings and on June 27 PTI would held rally in Bahawalpur.