Caretaker Information Minister Murtaza Solangi on Saturday said no country in the world gave the media access to those who were involved in serious crimes. Speaking to WION News, the minister said the former chairman of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) had been convicted and his conviction had not been set aside. “He remains convicted and charged with serious crimes,” he added.
“As we speak, the PTI remains a registered political party and if people bring its leaders in the federal and provincial assemblies, the caretaker government has no problem. It’s the people of Pakistan who have to make this decision,” the minister remarked. To a query, he said all political parties were being treated equally as the state had no favourites.
The state media was giving due coverage to all the political parties. “So far, the only constitutional body entrusted with holding free and fair elections is the Election Commission of Pakistan that stands committed to hold the elections on Thursday, February 8, 2024,” Solangi said in response to another query.
He said the constitutional caretaker government was committed to supporting the ECP in every possible way for the elections and “we will support the Election Commission in administrative, financial, and security matters”. Every political party was playing the role of a victim, he said. “If you ask the PTI, they will say we are not getting a level-playing field, especially in Punjab and K-P, and if you ask the Peoples Party, they will say we are not getting a level-playing field in Punjab.
“Likewise, if you ask the PML-N, they will say we are not getting a level-playing field in Sindh. If you ask Maulana Fazlur Rehman of the JUI, he will say we are not getting a level-playing field in Balochistan and K-P due to security issues,” the minister noted. He said the caretaker government had no vested interest in any political party.
