ATTOCK: Jamaat-i-Islami leader Siraj ul-Haq has called on the government to hold elections, saying it is the only way to bring political stability to Pakistan.
Haq emphasised that the government must follow the Constitution, and hold elections within the 90-day time limit. He urged politicians and the ruling government to avoid clashes with institutions, saying it is not beneficial for anyone.
Haq also emphasised that decisions related to the fate of the nation cannot be taken behind closed doors, and called for peaceful elections.
Jamaat has announced that it will host an all-parties conference (APC) after Eidul Fitr to develop consensus on same-day elections. The party believes that elections on different dates are not in the national interest, and that both the government and the opposition should find a middle ground.
The APC would help ease tensions between the government and the opposition, and provide an opportunity for convincing the government to agree to a date before October, and the PTI after May.
In order to materialise the proposal of holding an APC after the Eid holidays, both the government and the PTI have constituted committees to deliberate with the JI leadership on the proposal.
The PTI announced the Constitution of a three-member committee, comprising Pervaiz Khatak, Senator Ejaz Chaudhry, and Mahmood ur-Rasheed, while the PML-N has given the green signal to Khawaja Saad Rafique and Sardar Ayaz Sadiq to hold dialogue with the JI leadership on the APC issue.
Haq has warned that the ongoing situation has created a “poisonous polarisation among the masses”. He emphasised that it was very unfortunate that the people could predict court verdicts by the names of judges, as they knew which judge belonged to which side.
Haq urged all institutions to remain neutral during the elections, and called on political parties to come forward for dialogue to end the current political crisis in the country.
