Rigging in Pakistan polls? Imran Khan's PTI raises eyebrows amid delay in release of bombshell report

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Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has called for the immediate publication of the Commonwealth Observer Group’s (COG) final report on the country’s 2024 general elections, claiming the document exposes “systemic rigging, institutional bias and deliberate targeting” of the party and its founder, Imran Khan, according to a report in Dawn.

The demand comes after independent outlet Drop Site News alleged that the COG had “buried their report” despite identifying widespread irregularities in the February 8 polls.

In the  2024 elections, Independents backed by Imran Khan's PTI won the majority of the seats in the National Assembly. However, Imran's rivals PML-N and PPP stitched together an alliance to form the government.

When will the report be made public?

The official assessment on the election is yet to be made public. However, some media organisations have reported accessing leaked versions, raising questions about transparency.

In a statement issued on Sunday, the COG confirmed awareness of an online version of its report but stressed that it would not comment on leaked material.

“The government and the Election Commission of Pakistan have already received the report. The full report, as we had communicated earlier, will be released later this month, along with a number of COG reports currently in the publication pipeline,” the group said, underlining that its work is conducted “free from any interference.”

Observers said that election monitoring missions usually issue findings within days or weeks of polling. COG had shared preliminary observations on February 10, 2024, and promised that final recommendations would first be submitted to the Commonwealth secretary general before being handed to Islamabad and then released publicly.

What's in the report?

An excerpt from the leaked report, whose authenticity could not be independently verified, suggested that “despite the fact that early vote counts indicated a landslide victory for candidates aligned with... the banned PTI... saw their polling leads rapidly reversed.”

The document also mentioned restrictions on political freedoms, including arrests of PTI members, campaign disruptions and internet shutdowns, which opposition leaders claim were intended to weaken the party’s electoral prospects, Dawn reported.

PTI Central Information Secretary Sheikh Waqqas Akram argued the leak bolstered the party’s long-held position. “The leaked report validated PTI’s longstanding reservations about widespread pre- and post-poll rigging".

Former Imran Khan aide Zulfi Bukhari also criticised the delay, announcing plans to pursue legal action.

“Tomorrow, I will be consulting legal counsel to initiate proceedings aimed at securing disclosure, both of the report itself in full and of the decision-making processes that led to its suppression,” he wrote on X.

The delay in the release of findings has also fueled suspicion among PTI supporters and civil society groups.

Historically, Pakistan’s powerful military has frequently interfered in electoral processes, with critics noting that candidates backed by the army or aligned with its interests often emerge as winners.