Opposition parties will protest outside Sindh Assembly during inaugural session
KARACHI: Opposition parties in Sindh have announced plans to jointly stage a protest outside the provincial assembly during its inaugural session, citing what they perceive as ‘historic rigging’ in the 2024 General Elections.
Leaders from Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), Grand Democratic Alliance (GDA), Jamaat-e-Islami (JI), and Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fzal (JUI-F) made this announcement during a joint press conference.
PTI Sindh President Haleem Adil Sheikh alleged various forms of rigging in Karachi, Hyderabad, Larkana, and Sukkur, stating that there would be no dialogue with the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) and Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) as both parties allegedly benefited from the rigging.
JI Karachi Ameer Hafiz Naeemur Rehman declared that newly elected members of his party and PTI would abstain from taking the oath during the inaugural session as a form of protest against the perceived fraudulent mandate given to PPP and MQM-P.
JUI-F leader Rashid Soomro announced plans for a protest led by the GDA leadership, warning of potential disturbances if peaceful protest rights are denied.
GDA’s Safdar Abbasi labeled the 2024 General Elections as the ‘most rigged polls’ in the country’s history, asserting that opposition parties would never accept the ‘rigged’ outcomes.
Abbasi also criticized the role of the caretaker setup in Sindh, accusing interim Chief Minister Justice (retd) Maqbool Baqar of favoring the PPP. Notably, GDA previously organized a protest demonstration at Hyderabad Bypass against the alleged rigging, which saw participation from other opposition parties.
GDA Chief Pir Sibghatullah Shah Rashdi, commonly known as Pir Pagara, claimed that the 2024 General Elections were ‘pre-determined’ three months prior and asserted that he refrained from election campaigning as the outcome was already decided. Pir Pagara expressed solidarity with PTI, emphasizing that he does not consider Imran Khan a thief and suggesting that if Khan is a thief, then they all are.
