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Pakistan facing ‘unprecedented uncertainty’ ahead of polls: ANP

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  • PTI should tell on what agenda it wants to make alliance, Hoti asks.
  • ANP leader predicts coalition govt in KP, Centre.
  • “We cannot support the May 9 agenda,” he says.

PESHAWAR: Awami National Party (ANP) Central Senior Vice President Ameer Haider Khan Hoti has raised concerns over the “unprecedented uncertainty” prevailing in the country ahead of the February 8 elections, which he said was never seen before.   

Ostensibly, the comments came echoing Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman’s fear that he expressed a day ago that he did not foresee the February 8 elections happening as the country’s security situation was not suitable for polls. 

Maulana Fazl’s convoy came under attack from multiple sides at Yarik interchange in Dera Ismail Khan on December 31, luckily, the JUI-F chief was not present in the vehicles at the time.

Fazl has been constantly calling on the interim government and the election commission to ensure the law and order situation. He also stressed that it wasn’t the right time to be holding the polls.

Talking to Geo News in Peshawar, Hoti said his party would decide about forging an alliance with political parties in the general elections by January 13. To a query, he said the ANP could enter into an alliance with the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) if democracy was the focus of the agenda.

“The PTI should tell on what agenda it wants to make an alliance with us. We cannot support the May 9 agenda,” the ANP leader said pointing towards the violent incidents of May 9, 2023, that unfolded following the arrest of PTI founder Imran Khan in a corruption case. 

Citing the PTI’s consistent demand for a level-playing field, he said they were not even provided a field in the general elections of 2013 and 2018. All the favours were extended to the PTI in those elections, he maintained.

Hoti said the convicts and accused should not be allowed to participate in elections. 

He predicted that no single party would make government in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and the centre. Coalition governments would be formed in KP and the centre, the ANP leader added.

On December 26, Hoti had expressed fears that snatching of his party’s electoral symbol was also being pondered in a balancing act to prove another judgment right.

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Sheikh Rasheed says PTI and government negotiations won’t provide any results.

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Sheikh Rasheed voiced his worries about the nation’s ongoing political dilemma while speaking outside the Anti-Terrorism Court.

According to Sheikh Rasheed, a committee was established to negotiate, but the process has not produced any tangible results. In order to emphasize the seriousness of the situation, he said, “Political conditions are extremely bad.”

He made the joke, “Even after war, if negotiations fail, then it will all come down to judo karate,” in reference to the next steps.

“Everyone there prays for Pakistan’s betterment,” Sheikh Rasheed, who had returned from Saudi Arabia, said. He emphasized the necessity for the nation’s circumstances to improve and stabilize.

Assad Qaiser, a former speaker and PTI leader, had earlier called on Speaker Ayaz Sadiq of the National Assembly to discuss the official start of talks with the government.

The two leaders shared their opinions on bringing parties together on matters of national importance and reducing political tensions and conflict.

“I will persuade my people, you persuade the hardliners in your party,” Ayaz Sadiq said to Assad Qaiser.

The party’s founder is in jail, and the PTI leadership has asked to meet with him. “We will continue to confer with him,” Assad Qaiser declared.

Earlier, PTI leader Shaukat Yousafzai stated that if the discussions don’t begin, a campaign of civil disobedience will begin on December 14.

Speaking to the media Regarding the meetings, Yousafzai claimed that the government ministers were making insincere remarks.

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Bushra Bibi maintains bail as the IHC concludes the FIA’s petition.

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The Islamabad High Court (IHC) conducted a hearing about the Federal Investigation Agency’s (FIA) plea for the revocation of Bushra Bibi’s bail.

The court, led by Justice Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb, rejected the FIA’s petition during the hearing.

Judicial Proceedings

Justice Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb sought information regarding Bushra Bibi’s location, to which her attorney, Barrister Salman Safdar, affirmed her attendance in court.

The judge urged the counsel to regard the matters with gravity, underscoring the necessity of adherence to trial protocols.

The court sought details about instances where Bushra Bibi had been exempted from attending trial hearings and clarified that if the High Court grants bail and the accused fails to appear, the trial court holds the authority to cancel the bail.

Justice Aurangzeb assured that such actions would not amount to contempt of the High Court’s order.

Based on these considerations, the court closed the proceedings and dismissed the FIA’s plea.

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The Supreme Court has granted the appeal of the PTI founder for a judicial probe into the events of May 9.

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The Supreme Court has officially accepted the plea submitted by the PTI chairman for a judicial probe into the events of May 9 for a comprehensive hearing.

The constitutional bench of the Supreme Court annulled the registrar’s office’s objections to the petition and instructed the office to allocate a case number and arrange the hearing.

The PTI chairman was represented by prominent attorney Hamid Khan, who appeared in court to argue for the petition’s admission.

The Lahore Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) already convicted Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan in connection with the incidents on May 9 and denied his bail on eight distinct counts.

The court’s finding was delivered in a six-page written order by ATC Judge Manzar Ali Gul.

The written ruling emphasized substantial evidence against the PTI founder, comprising audio and visual recordings of his directives to incite violence.

The court observed that witnesses had provided testimony on the conspiracy planned by Imran Khan at Zaman Park, where he purportedly strategized for his possible arrest by intending to disrupt state functions via his supporters.

Imran Khan’s legal counsel contended that he was in custody at the time of the incidents, proposing that bail be granted in accordance with precedents where bail was awarded in like circumstances following detention.

Nevertheless, the court rejected this argument, underscoring that the case’s nature was not a trifling issue of conspiracy or incitement.

The prosecution established that Mr. Khan had explicitly incited assaults on military and governmental facilities and had galvanized both his commanders and supporters to adhere to his directives.

The decision additionally cited the Lahore High Court’s finding regarding a prior release granted to Ijaz Chaudhry, highlighting Imran Khan’s involvement in the conspiracy. The court dismissed the defense’s challenge over the prosecution’s lack of specificity concerning the date, time, or location of the purported conspiracy, affirming that the scheme was allegedly devised on May 7 and May 9 at Zaman Park.

The prosecution asserts that undercover police officers, masquerading as PTI supporters, intercepted discussions outlining the scheme.

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