Pakistan: Boycott of second phase of Sindh’s local body elections

According to media reports, the Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) has announced a ‘boycott’ of the second round of Sindh’s local body elections, which are being held in seven districts, including Karachi and Hyderabad divisions.

The declaration came as the political party sought new delimitation before holding local body elections. Despite assurances from the Sindh administration that the elections would be postponed, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) insisted on holding them on January 15. Notably, the boycott was announced just hours before the LG elections.

The second round of LG elections was set for July 24 last year, but the Sindh government cancelled the votes due to a lack of security and police presence due to floods.

During a news conference with the party’s highest leadership, MQM-P Convener Dr Khalid Maqbool stated: “Elections for local governments have already been rigged. As a result, we refuse to accept the results of the polls.”

“The electoral commission was constituted to ensure that the elections were conducted in a transparent way. However, the electoral commission has failed to carry out its primary role. The party denounced this unfairness ” stated Dr. Siddhiqui.

He further added “We have fought for justice up to today [January 15]. The provincial administration also brought the ECP’s attention to the constituency boundaries.” However, the ECP ignored all of MQM-pleas, P’s.

In addition, the MQM-P leader asked residents to stay at home and participate in the demonstration.