ECP accepts apologies by Azam Swati, Fawad Chaudhry for anti-Commission remarks
PTI leaders Swati and Fawad had accused ECP of accepting money from electronic voting system manufacturers
December 22, 2021
- ECP pardons PTI leaders Azam Swati, Fawad Chaudhary in an accusations case against CEC and commission.
- ECP warns ministers to exercise caution in future.
- "You have more responsibilities," ECP tells ministers.
ISLAMABAD: The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has accepted the apologies of Federal Minister for Railways and PTI leader Azam Swati and Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry in connection with a case in which the two ministers accused the ECP of accepting money from electronic voting system (EVM) manufacturers.
On Wednesday, Azam Swati appeared before the ECP, where he was pardoned and warned to exercise caution in future.
"You have more responsibilities," the ECP stated.
The ECP also questioned the minister on his absence from earlier hearings. "You are a busy man, why didn't you appear in previous hearings?" inquired the ECP.
Swati remarked that he has always advocated for the independence of the ECP.
"All the institutions are yours; it is not appropriate to talk bad about them,” the ECP remarked.
Azam Swati and Fawad Chaudhry were warned by the ECP to exercise caution in future.
Swati expressed gratitude to the ECP for accepting his apology.
He stated that the ECP will make sound judgments regarding EVMs and that the government will support them in order to bolster the ECP.
Barrister Ali Zafar, Azam Swati's lawyer, stated that they have apologised for what occurred in the past and now they must collaborate with the ECP.
The case
The ECP had served notices to Chaudhry and Swati on September 16, seeking explanations from both ministers for accusations against CEC Sikander Sultan Raja and the commission.
Swati had lashed out at the ECP, accusing it of taking money from companies that make electronic voting machines during a meeting of the Senate Standing Committee on Parliamentary Affairs on September 10.
Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry had also tendered an apology to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) for his remarks in which he had described the chief of the commission as a "mouthpiece of the Opposition."
