{"id":15276,"date":"2024-02-08T12:47:39","date_gmt":"2024-02-08T12:47:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/2024\/02\/08\/pakistan-prepares-for-pivotal-election-as-one-of-the-leading-candidates-serves-jail-time\/"},"modified":"2024-02-08T12:47:39","modified_gmt":"2024-02-08T12:47:39","slug":"pakistan-prepares-for-pivotal-election-as-one-of-the-leading-candidates-serves-jail-time","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/2024\/02\/08\/pakistan-prepares-for-pivotal-election-as-one-of-the-leading-candidates-serves-jail-time\/","title":{"rendered":"Pakistan prepares for pivotal election as one of the leading candidates serves jail time"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

Pakistan heads to the polls Thursday with one of the leading candidates languishing in prison as some reports claim that voter enthusiasm is lacking among the country\u2019s\u00a0nearly 128 million voters.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan, founder of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), has been barred from contesting the national parliamentary elections. Khan was ousted as the country\u2019s 22nd prime minister after a no-confidence vote in April 2022. The former cricketer-turned-politician is currently serving more than 30 years in jail. Three out of Khan\u2019s four sentences were delivered last week. Khan has been imprisoned since August 2023.<\/p>\n

Khan\u2019s party has raised fears of pre-poll rigging, something seemingly shared by voters. A recent Gallup poll revealed 70% of Pakistanis lack confidence in the honesty of their elections. The current election cycle has been marred with violence and harassment, casting a long shadow over the proceedings.<\/p>\n

Forty-four political parties are to compete for a share of the 266 seats in the National Assembly, the lower house of parliament. The newly elected parliament will then choose the country\u2019s next prime minister.<\/p>\n

Despite many surveys having Khan as the favored leader, three-time former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif is expected to return to power. Like Khan, Sharif is no stranger to\u00a0the military establishment\u2019s wrath and legal cases, which prematurely ended his past three terms as prime minister. Sharif, 74, had his last premiership cut short in 2017 over corruption allegations.<\/p>\n

As a politician, Khan has been known to advocate for liberal ideas while simultaneously catering to Islamic principles and sentiments. During his tenure, Pakistan witnessed a notable surge in Islamist militancy and the fortification of positions held by religious radicals.<\/p>\n

Sharif and his Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) took control of the country under his brother\u2019s leadership in 2022. At the time, Sharif had exiled himself abroad to avoid being jailed at home.<\/p>\n

The PML-N has been campaigning largely on Pakistan\u2019s dire financial situation. The country faced the threat of default last June and is suffering from rising poverty levels. The International Monetary Fund has warned of persistent inflation hovering around 24% this year.<\/p>\n

A third major party and\u00a0PML-N\u00a0ally, the\u00a0Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), is unlikely to garner enough support to secure the premiership. However, PPP leader Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari still stands a chance to be a part of a coalition government under Sharif.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Syed Zulfiqar Bukhari, a former cabinet member and adviser to Khan, told Fox News Digital that Khan is wrapped up in more than 190 cases. Bukhari said all charges are politically motivated to keep Khan out of the election. Khan\u2019s PTI party alleges a\u00a0coordinated effort to obstruct their participation in the elections. \u2018Draconian\u2019 measures against the party include arrests, home raids, and internet disruptions and freezes, Bukhari said.<\/p>\n

Government suppression has led to numerous detentions and heavy-handed tactics have forced PTI leaders to abandon the party. The United Nation\u2019s leading human rights body recently warned of a \u2018pattern of harassment\u2019 against members of Khan\u2019s party.<\/p>\n

A spokesperson for the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Office has urged Pakistani authorities to ensure a free and fair election. In an effort to uphold this standard, the Ministry\u00a0of Foreign Affairs has announced that there will be as many as 92 international election observers. These observers will include European Union members and several foreign embassies.<\/p>\n

Both the military and Pakistan\u2019s caretaker government have denied suppressing Khan or\u00a0the PTI, despite the party\u2019s complaints of being marginalized and muzzled. Nonetheless, the PTI has\u00a0pressed on, even leveraging artificial intelligence (AI) in its strategy.<\/p>\n

With Khan confined in isolation, his party\u00a0has heavily relied on social media. The PTI party\u2019s Instagram, X and TikTok accounts boast several million followers,\u00a0outstripping Pakistan\u2019s two other main parties combined. The party has utilized generative AI to create Khan-approved content; Khan\u2019s preliminary AI-generated speech debuted at a first-ever virtual rally.<\/p>\n

Bukhari says the party\u2019s strategic use of \u2018social media seems to be doing the trick.\u2019 The PTI has also cautiously and quietly been conducting covert canvassing operations to avoid further crackdowns. The PTI has stayed steadfast in the face of adversity and is \u2018hopeful to scoop an easy win,\u2019 Bukhari told Fox News Digital.<\/p>\n

The Associated Press contributed to this report.<\/p>\n\n

This post appeared first on FOX NEWS<\/div>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Pakistan heads to the polls Thursday with one of the leading candidates languishing in prison as some reports claim that voter enthusiasm is lacking among the country\u2019s\u00a0nearly 128 million voters.\u00a0 Former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan, founder of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), has been barred from contesting the national parliamentary elections. Khan was ousted as the <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":15277,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[25],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-15276","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-politics"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15276","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=15276"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15276\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/15277"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=15276"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=15276"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=15276"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}