LAHORE: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf Nazriati (PTI-N) Chief Akhtar Iqbal Dar has rejected any deal with Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) regarding contesting elections on his party electoral symbol batsman. He said this in his press conference following the PTI’s unveiling of Plan B, instructing candidates to submit PTI-N tickets with returning officers.
During a press conference in Lahore, Dar accused PTI of submitting fake tickets under PTI-N’s name. “I do not know from where the PTI candidates got our tickets. PTI submitted our fake tickets; I myself issued tickets to PTI ideological candidates,” he said.
Accusing PTI of forgery, Dar stated that candidates from one party cannot utilize the platform of another. He called upon the Election Commission to thoroughly investigate and take appropriate action against any instances of electoral forgery.
Highlighting the distinct identity of PTI-N within the political spectrum, Dar declared, “PTIN has its own manifesto, its own constitution; our slogan is the death penalty for corruption.”
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Responding to circulating rumors, Dar revealed that the distinguishing mark on their tickets is the unmistakable ‘batsman’ symbol. He claimed that Returning Officers (ROs) inquired about their tickets, and PTI-N clarified that their tickets bore the clear mark of the regular ‘batsman,’ consistent with their 2018 election tickets.
Displaying a PTI-N ticket to the media, Dar stated, “This is our ticket. PTI has submitted our fake tickets. The Election Commission of Pakistan has issued a clear and blunt order that no candidate of any party can use the ticket of any other party.”
Dar explained the genesis of PTI-N, stating, “In 2007, I felt the need to discourage rigging, hooliganism, money politics, electorate politics, and promote transparency. That’s why PTIN was formed, and I must be a part of PTIN.”
Earlier in the day, PTI unveiled its ‘Plan B,’ introducing a strategy to field candidates under the banner of PTI-N. This move comes as the party aims to ensure representation even if its primary ticket faces challenges. Under Plan ‘B,’ PTI has instructed candidates to submit tickets in the name of PTI-N alongside the standard party ticket, adopting the party registered in the Election Commission as its covering entity for this electoral tactic.
The ECP, however, issued directives for returning officers shortly after the PTI plane be a revelation to reject applications where a member of a political party seeks the election symbol of another party.
