ISLAMABAD: Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Sikander Sultan Raja categorically rejected former prime minister Imran Khan’s demand for him to step down on Saturday, saying he had “no intention” of tendering his resignation, according to Dawn News.
The former prime minister held a news conference at his Bani Gala residence in Islamabad wherein he accused Raja of being partisan.
He said the CEC deliberately took actions against his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, adding that Raja should resign since he was not neutral.
Raja heads the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), the country’s autonomous federal body responsible for organizing and conducting elections.
Speaking to Dawn News after Khan’s press conference, Raja said he was not considering stepping down from the post.
“I have no intention of tendering my resignation,” he was quoted as saying by Dawn News. The CEC maintained there was no valid reason to even “think like that.”
“I am working in the best interests of the country and will continue to do so,” he added.
Chief Election Commissioner of Pakistan Sikandar Sultan Raja during a meeting in Islamabad on April 19, 2022. (Photo courtesy: @ECP_Pakistan/Twitter)
Raja was appointed to the post of CEC in January 2020 after lengthy discussions between ex-PM Khan’s government and opposition parties.
A parliamentary panel headed by the former human rights minister Dr. Shireen Mazari had announced that the government and opposition parties had unanimously agreed on Raja’s name for the post.
She also maintained that no other institution had been involved in his appointment.
“Parliamentarians have taken a decision, which was their responsibility,” she said while making the announcement. “Parliamentary matters should be decided by parliament.”
Responding to the former prime minister’s allegations against the CEC, the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) party claimed he was targeting Raja since the ECP was expected to announce a verdict in a case related the funding of Khan’s party.
The foreign funding case against the PTI acquired political significance when the party’s former central vice president Akbar S. Babar said there was a massive scam that related to the party’s funding from its supporters abroad.
Khan has denied the PTI ever indulged in any wrongdoing when it came to fundraising and called on the ECP to investigate the alleged foreign funding received by his rival Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) and PML-N parties at the same time.
