Post date: May 12, 2013 1:12:53 PM
The election will boost Pakistan's young democracy, former cricketer Imran Khansays in a video message.
LAHORE, PAKISTAN (MAY 12, 2013) (ORIGINALLY 4:3) (ARY TV) - Former cricketer Imran Khan's Tehrik-i-Insaf (PTI) came second inPakistan's parliamentary elections, losing first place to Nawaz Sharif's Pakistan Muslim League (PML-N).
Khan put up a strong fight and he is likely to remain a force in politics, possibly becoming the main opposition figure.
In the end, cricketing hero Khan did not have the momentum needed to trip up Sharif despite his popularity among urban youths, many of whom were voting for the first time.They had rallied behind Khan's calls for an end to graft and a halt to U.S. drone strikes against suspected militants on Pakistani soil, widely seen as a violation of sovereignty.
In a video message, Khan said the election would boost Pakistan's young democracy.
"We are advancing towards the process and evolution of democracy. The second thing is that Pakistanis are delighted to see all those participating in politics who would never cast their vote. It means that political awareness has come to the country and the nation has decided to take its fate into its own hands. Thirdly, the passion of youth has given me the best joy in my 17 years in politics. The way they were there, the fire within them and the way they stood an ideology, the ideology ofPakistan. I want to thank the youth of Pakistan. Victory and defeat are part of life but the passion of youth has soothed all the pain of defeat," Khan said.
In one sense, the polls were a democratic landmark, marking the first time one elected government was to replace another in a country vulnerable to military takeovers.
Despite Pakistan's history of coups, the army stayed out of politics during the five years of the last government and threw its support behind the election.