ISLAMABAD (Reuters) – Pakistan’s defence minister on Wednesday criticised a U.S. House of Representatives resolution calling for an investigation into allegations of voter fraud in the country’s February general elections.
The election, in which no party won a majority, was marred by violence, communications blackouts and allegations of vote-rigging by the party of jailed former prime minister Imran Khan, which the country’s election commission denies.
“They have no right to interfere in our internal affairs or pass any judgement on the matter,” Defence Minister Khawaja Asif told local broadcaster Geo News.
He called the resolution passed on Tuesday “worthless” and described it as political posturing in an election year in the U.S. The House resolution called for an independent investigation and condemned any attempt to subvert the electoral process.
Pakistan’s foreign ministry issued a more carefully worded statement, saying the resolution “arose out of a poor understanding of Pakistan’s political situation and electoral process.”
Washington’s support will be crucial for the country in the coming weeks as Islamabad tries to secure a new bailout from the International Monetary Fund to avert an economic crisis.
Michael Kugelman, director of the Wilson Center’s South Asia Institute, said in a post on social media platform X that the resolution would not have a major impact on Washington’s policy towards Pakistan.
But he noted that the resolution has bipartisan support, adding that he doubted Pakistan could follow suit with legislation.
The resolution was welcomed by Khan’s party, who had been barred from standing in the election.
“We hope other countries and leaders will follow the example of the U.S. House of Representatives,” Zulfiqar Bukhari, a senior aide to Khan, said in a text message.
Khan’s independent candidates won the most seats but did not have enough votes to form a government, and instead a coalition of his rivals formed a government led by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.
The poll remains controversial and faces numerous legal challenges.
(Reporting by Gibran Peshimam; Editing by Cynthia Osterman)
