It has been two days since the counting of votes started after the elections held on Thursday in Pakistan, but the results of the elections have not come yet.
In the neighboring country Pakistan, elections are conducted through ballot paper instead of electronic voting machine (EVM).
The election results are being delayed due to lengthy vote counting. Due to the delay, even the political parties participating in the elections are losing patience.
There have been allegations of vote counting and election rigging by many parties. Pakistan President Arif Alvi also said that if the elections were held through EVMs then such a situation would not have arisen.
Had EVMs been there, this would not have happened: Pakistani President
Pakistan President Arif Alvi said that the crisis caused by the delay in announcement of election results could have been avoided if EVMs had been implemented.
He mentioned that Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) had strongly supported the implementation of EVMs in the elections, but it could not be implemented.
“Each vote pressed in an EVM can be counted using a simple button, like an electronic calculator,” he said on X.
With its use, the votes polled by each candidate would be visible within five minutes of the end of voting.” He said that 50 meetings were held in the direction of implementing EVMs, all of which have gone in vain.
Why can’t EVM be used in elections?
According to the report of Dawn newspaper, former Prime Minister Imran Khan had vowed in the year 2021 that elections would be conducted through EVMs in 2023. But this could not happen.
With the change of power in Pakistan, this idea also got shelved. When Shahbaz Sharif’s government came to power in Pakistan, he protested against the use of EVMs in elections.
In May 2023, Shehbaz Sharif’s government said that EVMs would not be used in the upcoming general elections. Shahbaz Sharif’s government always kept alleging that Imran Khan’s government pushed Pakistan into deep debt. In such a situation, there would have been huge expenditure in conducting elections through EVMs.
Imran’s supported candidates are ahead
General elections were held in Pakistan on Thursday and counting of votes began soon after.
It was expected that the counting results would be available by Friday morning but the delay in announcing the results strengthened the fear of vote manipulation.
According to the Election Commission of Pakistan, out of 265 National Assembly seats, the counting process has been completed on 253 seats and independent candidates have won the maximum 99 seats.
Most of these candidates are supported by former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s party PTI.