ISLAMABAD — Pakistan’s Attorney General Malik Qayyum yesterday rejected a statement by a US-based rights group that said it had obtained a recording of him predicting next week’s elections will be “massively rigged.”

Human Rights Watch (HRW) said that in the audio recording Qayyum appeared to be advising an unidentified person on what party the person should approach to become a candidate in the parliamentary poll.

“They will massively rig to get their own people to win. If you can get a ticket from these guys, take it,” the voice on the recording says in Urdu. The voice, however, does not identify who would do the rigging.

A spokesman for former premier Sharif described the HRW recording as “shameful.”

However, Qayyum, a close ally of President Pervez Musharraf, said that the allegation was “ridiculous... a conspiracy against Pakistan” and denied making the comment.

“It is a ridiculous allegation, totally baseless. I have never uttered these words,” Qayyum said while talking to the media.

“Why should I? The election commission is holding free and fair elections and I support free and fair elections.” The attorney general argued that his brother was a member of the party of opposition leader Nawaz Sharif “so on the face of it, it is absolutely nonsense.”

HRW said the recording was made during a phone interview between the attorney general and a reporter in November 2007.

Qayyum took a call on another telephone and his side of that conversation was recorded, it said.

“I am going to sue this organization for defaming me, it’s a conspiracy because I am close to President Pervez Musharraf. They just want to hatch a conspiracy against Pakistan,” Qayyum said.

HRW director Brad Adams declined to respond to the attorney general’s warning of legal action.

Meanwhile, Musharraf pledged on Thursday that the elections would be free, fair and transparent, but warned opposition groups not to protest against the result if they did not accept it.

Opposition figures have accused Musharraf’s government of trying to rig Monday’s elections in favor of his allies, in a bid to avoid possible impeachment by a hostile parliament.

Slain opposition leader Benazir Bhutto’s widower, Asif Ali Zardari, this week threatened to stage demonstrations if the polls are fraudulent and urged supporters to “besiege” polling stations to make sure the vote is fair.

The US State Department has predicted that some rigging was to be expected in the election process, while HRW has accused the election commission of lacking independence.

— With input from agencies