Maulana Fazlur Rehman, the head of Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F), asserted on Saturday that the general elections scheduled for February 8, 2024, were even more manipulated than those held in 2018.
His comments followed the discovery of “ideological coordination” between the JUI-F, a previous political adversary of Imran Khan, and the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), which is opposed to the PML-N-led government.
Imran Khan was removed from office in April 2022 thanks to the JUI-F chief’s pivotal role in uniting the PML-N and PPP, two bitter rivals, under the Pakistan Democratic Movement, a multi-party alliance. Khan became the first prime minister to be removed from office by the National Assembly through a motion of no confidence.
After 16 months in power, the JUI-F and his erstwhile partners, the PPP and PML-N, began to diverge after the former was ostensibly disregarded in the process of building a new government following the polls on February 8. In the meantime, the leader of JUI-F claimed that their mandate had been pilfered from the elections.
Speaking at a public gathering in Pishin, Balochistan, the JUI-F emphasized the need for unity among the political factions and declared, “Now is not the time to fight.” The establishment always employed politicians.
