Former president of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), Makhdoom Javed Hashmi said Thursday that his former party’s concerns over possible rigging in the upcoming by-election in NA-149 reflected their fear of defeat as they have realised that the contest was one-sided in his favour.
The by-election was announced after Hashmi resigned from the National Assembly seat against the backdrop of PTI and PAT-led anti-government protests in the federal capital.
After developing differences with PTI Chairman Imran Khan, Hashmi had also resigned from the party presidency and membership earlier in this month. He has decided to contest the upcoming by-election as an independent candidate.
Addressing a press conference at his residence, he claimed that neither he nor PTI Vice Chairman Shah Mahmood Quershi ever made allegations of rigging in the 2013 general elections. He claimed that Qureshi had told the party’s parliamentary committee that the May 11 polls were not rigged on a ‘massive scale’.
Hashmi said the PTI public meeting on October 10 in Multan would not benefit its candidate.
