Top bureaucrat in Pakistan’s Rawalpindi resigns after admitting responsibility for manipulating poll results

ISLAMABAD: A top bureaucrat in Pakistan’s garrison city of Rawalpindi on Saturday resigned from his post after admitting responsibility for the manipulation of Feb. 8 election results, amid protests by political parties over alleged rigging of polls.

Liaquat Ali Chattha, the Rawalpindi Division commissioner, made shocking revelations at a press conference, at which he admitted his involvement in manipulation of results in five districts of the division.

These five districts included Attock, Rawalpindi, Murree, Jhelum and Chakwal, which had 13 national and 26 provincial assembly seats up for grabs in the Feb. 8 election.

“The wrongful act I have committed in this election [is that] we have made people, who had lost [the election], win 13 MNA (member of the National Assembly) seats from Rawalpindi. We have turned up to 70,000[-vote] lead of individuals into their defeat,” Chattha said.

“Even today, our people are putting fake stamps [on ballot papers]. I apologize to all my returning officers who were working under my supervision, who were crying when I was asking them to commit this wrongful act, and they were not willing to do it.”

The development came amid nationwide protests by former prime minister Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and other political parties over alleged rigging of last week’s polls.

While the vote failed to present a clear winner, independent candidates, most loyal to Khan, secured the highest 101 parliamentary seats, according to official results. They were followed by three-time former PM Nawaz Sharif’s Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) party that bagged 75 seats and former foreign minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari-led Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) which won 54 seats.

However, Khan’s party, which was severely hamstrung ahead of the polls, with rallies banned, its party symbol taken away, and dozens of its candidates rejected from eligibility to stand, insists that its victory was turned into defeat in nearly two dozen constituencies.

At the presser, Chattha said he was under immense pressure from “overseas Pakistanis” and “social media” that he even contemplated suicide. He called for stern punishment for himself along with other senior state functionaries, including the chief election commissioner.

The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) strongly denied Chattha’s allegations against itself and its top official.

“No official of the Election Commission ever issued instructions to the Rawalpindi commissioner for a change of election results,” the ECP said in a statement.

“The commissioner of any division is neither a DRO (district returning officer), RO (returning officer) or presiding officer, nor they have a direct role in the conduct of election.”

However, the ECP said it would soon hold an inquiry into the matter.

Mohsin Naqvi, the caretaker chief minister of the Punjab province which Rawalpindi division is a part of, has ordered an independent inquiry into Chattha’s allegations.

“An independent inquiry into the allegations will be conducted,” Naqvi said in a statement. “Real facts with regard to the Rawalpindi commissioner’s allegations will be brought forth.”