Imran to take oath on August 18, ex-Indian cricketers invited
Islamabad, Aug 10: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf chief Imran Khan will take over as Prime Minister on August 18 and Indian cricket legends Sunil Gavaskar, Kapil Dev and Navjot Sidhu have been invited for the swearing-in ceremony, a party spokesperson said on Friday.
Javed Khan, Additional Information Secretary of PTI, said the members of Imran Khan's 1992 World Cup winning team have also been invited to attend the ceremony.
A similar announcement regarding inviting Indian cricketers and celebrities to the ceremony had earlier been made by PTI Information Secretary Fawad Chaudhry. However, it was later said that Khan had opted for an austere ceremony and decided against inviting foreign dignitaries and celebrities to the planned oath-taking.
President Mamnoon Hussain has summoned a session of the National Assembly for August 13 during which newly-elected members will take oath of their office. Elections for the speaker, deputy speaker and the Leader of the House will take place.
PTI spokesperson Fawad Chaudhry on Thursday said: "Imran will be elected Prime Minister of the country within the first round of vote in the parliament." He further claimed that his party has the support of 180 members in National Assembly.
Meanwhile, parties allied against the PTI, including Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz, Pakistan Peoples Party and Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal, have decided to field their own candidates for Prime Minister and National Assembly speaker.
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Sanjay Raut demands re-election, alleges irregularities in EVMs during Maharashtra polls
Mumbai, Nov 25: Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut on Monday demanded a re-election in Maharashtra using ballot papers, claiming there were irregularities with the electronic voting machines (EVMs).
Talking to reporters, Raut alleged several complaints about EVMs malfunctioning and questioned the integrity of the recently held elections.
The BJP-led Mahayuti won 230 out of 288 seats in the assembly elections, while the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi managed 46 seats, with Shiv Sena (UBT) winning just 20 out of 95 seats it contested.
"We have received nearly 450 complaints regarding EVMs. Despite raising objections repeatedly, no action has been taken on these issues. How can we say these elections were conducted fairly? Hence, I demand that the results be set aside and elections be held again using ballot papers," Raut said.
Citing some instances, he said a candidate in Nashik reportedly received only four votes despite having 65 votes from his family, while in Dombivli, discrepancies were found in EVM tallies, and election officials refused to acknowledge the objections.
The Sena (UBT) leader also questioned the credibility of the landslide victories of some candidates, saying, "What revolutionary work have they done to receive more than 1.5 lakh votes? Even leaders who recently switched parties have become MLAs. This raises suspicions. For the first time, a senior leader like Sharad Pawar has expressed doubts about EVMs, which cannot be ignored."
Asked about the MVA's poor performance in the elections, Raut rejected the idea of blaming a single individual.
"We fought as a united MVA. Even a leader like Sharad Pawar, who commands immense respect in Maharashtra, faced defeat. This shows that we need to analyse the reasons behind the failure. One of the reasons is EVM irregularities and the misuse of the system, unconstitutional practices, and even judicial decisions left unresolved by Justice Chandrachud," he said.
Raut stressed that though internal differences might have existed within the MVA, the failure was collective.
He also accused the Mahayuti of conducting the elections in an unfair manner.
"I cannot call the elections fair given the numerous reports of discrepancies in EVMs, mismatched numbers, and vote irregularities across the state," Raut said.
