Pakistani Senator Syed Shibli Faraz praised the Indian electoral system wholeheartedly even as he questioned the unfair Pakistani elections conducted on February 8. He said over 800 million cast their votes using Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) in India and there are no complaints from any quarters. In sharp contrast, far fewer cast their votes in Pakistan and yet there was widespread rigging.
“I don’t want to quote the example of our enemy country. Recently, elections were held there (India), and over 800 million people cast their votes. There were thousands and lakhs of polling stations, with some polling stations even established for just one voter in a place. The entire month-long exercise was conducted with the help of EVMs. Was there a single voice claiming that the election was rigged?” the Senator remarked.
He pointed out that the transition of power happened in India smoothly as the electoral system’s legitimacy is not in question. In Pakistan, those who lose the elections call themselves winners and form the government. This was his most direct attack on the legitimacy of PML-N government led by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif. “This country has been fighting for legitimacy. Here, those who have lost the polls don’t concede, and the winner is also elected at his own will. This kind of approach has hollowed our political system,” he added.
Shibli Faraz questioned why Pakistan can’t have a fair electoral system in which all political parties have faith. He said it wanted Pakistan to move in the direction of electoral integrity that India has showed in its recent elections. No Indian political party is saying that it did not get the votes that were cast in its favour.
He was speaking in the Pakistani Senate on the annual budget Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb had presented on Wednesday. He said that unfair elections lead to governments like that of PML-N which rules Pakistan today and lack legitimacy. This lack of legitimacy springs from the fact that the elections are not held in a free and fair manner in Pakistan, he added.
Why are there such governments in Pakistan? How are they any different from dictatorships that have ruled Pakistan? Asking these questions rhetorically, Shibli Faraz said that since 1971, Pakistan has been ruled most of the time by illegitimate governments. He said this time of over 50 years was divided between PML-N and Pakistan People’s Party (PPP). For some time, in between, some dictators ruled Pakistan but all three were similar basically.
Regarding his own Pakistan Tehreek Insaaf, he said the PTI has not contributed to this phenomenon. He said it came to power in 2018 only and ruled the nation for very little time. As such, the PTI cannot be blamed for what ails the nation.
Even today, PTI is the largest party in both the Houses, the Senate as also National Assembly, and yet it is in the opposition, he said. Addressing Senate Chairman Yousuf Raza Geelani, Shibli Faraz said he should listen to these facts and not mind them. Incidentally, Geelani of the PPP had got this post due to political bargaining with PML-N in lieu of outside support to PML-N government. Geelani looked uncomfortable as Shibli Faraz made these remarks and there was loud thumping of desks.
The speech was telecast live on Pakistan Parliament television and drew large number of viewers. Shibli Faraz quoted a few lines of his father, late legendary poet Ahmed Faraz to make a couple of points. The entire House listened to the senior PTI Senator in rapt attention as he questioned the mandate received by PML-N and PPP.
