PM Imran Khan issued with a show cause notice
Shares
ISLAMABAD - The Election Commission of Pakistan has issued a show cause notice to Prime Minister Imran Khan for visiting the NA-205 Ghotki-II constituency ahead of a bye-election scheduled for next month.
The ECP's show cause notice came in response to a complaint by Pakistan People's Party (PPP) candidate for the bye-election, Abdul Bari Pitafi, who had approached the Commission asking it to take notice of the prime minister's visit to Ghotki on Wednesday.
Prime Minister Imran Khan has visited Khan Gharh in Ghotki on Wednesday where he met Mehr tribe elder Sardar Ali Gohar Khan Mahar and condoled with him over the demise of his brother, federal minister Sardar Ali Muhammed Khan Mahar. During the visit, Ali Gohar Khan Mahar raised several political and developmental issues and also introduced the late minister's son and their NA-205 by-election candidate Sardar Ahmad Ali Khan to the prime minister.
In his complaint to the ECP, PPP candidate Pitafi had challenged the prime minister's visit to Ghotki at a time when the election schedule had been announced, terming it an attempt to influence the outcome of the election.
In its show cause notice to Prime Minister Imran Khan , the election commission termed the visit a violation of its code of conduct.
"Being a member of parliament and holding a chair of Prime Minister of Pakistan, you were fully aware about the announcement of schedule of bye-election…which requires that you cannot visit the constituency in any manner whatsoever after announcement of the Election Schedule," the regional election commissioner Abdul Rehman Arain, said in his notice to the prime minister.
