Daily Times

As an idea, a caretaker government is supposed to hold the fort while the baton is passed from one elected government to the next. To ensure their overseeing of a free and fair transfer of power, whosoever is nominated to take the reins in the interim, perpetually acts on the qui vive watchful for any wrong optics.

In stark contrast to the constitution and the precedent, the cabinet presiding over Punjab, in particular, refuses to get down from its high horse. The regal stride and a glaring sense of impunity see the local administration ruthlessly invent bizarre contraptions to tilt the scales in the favour of their chosen candidates. The shenanigans are far from over amid swirling reports of roadblocks being the latest tool to obstruct the path of those who wish to approach the election commission office. Snatching nomination papers, raids on personal property and ferocious crackdowns on top of strange reservations being raised during the scrutiny process, there’s little the government is not attempting to spread terror.

If the supposed frontrunner party in Punjab is actually confident about riding on the shoulders of its past performance, what on god’s green earth could explain the Neronian high-handedness? Going by the ECP’s explanation, it cannot risk uploading the voters’ lists out of security concerns. However, if one may reluctantly buy the sob tale about how nefarious outfits can very conveniently harm the integrity of the upcoming polls, as said to have done during the US Presidential Elections, would the ECP and caretaker administrations assure the people that they would stand guard just as resolutely against all other pitfalls?

This oblivion towards reservations, especially from one political party, about the absence of a level playing field would go on to haunt the credibility of not only these governing bodies but the entire prestigious exercise that forms the bedrock of democracy. Instead of unbecomingly investing energies to strip the bat symbol, the caretaker setup should be a tad more serious towards its duties. Like always, these pages would, for the umpteenth time, emphasise how there could not be a greater disservice to the 240 million Pakistanis than a round of tainted, controversial elections. *