In response to the publication of its report “The War Against Voters” in February 2025, the Pattan Development Organisation has faced retaliatory attacks by the government of Pakistan. The detailed report alleges extensive electoral fraud in Pakistan’s 2024 general elections, identifying 64 distinct methods of manipulation, including significant discrepancies in voter turnout and alterations to election result forms published on the Election Commission’s website. The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) dismissed the findings, labeling the report as “baseless and fabricated propaganda.”
Following the report’s release, authorities sealed the residence of Pattan’s National Coordinator, Sarwar Bari, in Islamabad, and the organization’s office in Multan, actions perceived as retaliation for exposing alleged electoral misconduct and as an attempt to suppress independent voices and civil society activism. This action seems to be a part of the existing trend of enhancing restrictions on civil society and the suppression of dissenting voices in Pakistan. This pattern suggests a shrinking civic space in which civil society organizations and independent monitors are facing growing challenges in making authorities accountable and encouraging democratic transparency in Pakistan. This precedent of retaliation for a report that seeks to expose corruption or lack of transparency has the potential to intimidate CSOs and may mean that other organizations are less likely to follow Pattan’s example and carry out their own independent monitoring or criticize electoral processes. The right to access to information is also affected negatively, as discredited or suppressed civil society reports limit the public’s access to information on the integrity of elections. Additionally, the ECP’s reaction to dismiss the report and react punitively, rather than investigating these claims through transparent processes, shows that it is reluctant to ensure transparency, which can discourage people from coming out to vote in future elections and erodes people’s confidence in elections.