ISLAMABAD: On Tuesday, Interim Interior Minister Sarfraz Ahmad Bugti stated that the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) would receive full security support to ensure peaceful general elections scheduled for February 8.
The ECP had previously requested the deployment of the army and civil armed forces outside polling stations due to a shortfall of over 277,000 police personnel across the country to ensure peaceful elections. Bugti assured that the caretaker government would take necessary measures to provide the required facilities for transparently conducting the elections.
He urged political parties to cooperate with law enforcement agencies (LEAs) before organizing public meetings or corner meetings for the election campaign. Bugti emphasized that timely information about such gatherings would aid security institutions in making better arrangements.
Addressing the increased incidents of terrorism in the country, Bugti stated that LEAs were fully alert to control the menace of terrorism. He noted that the country’s enemies were attempting to sabotage the peaceful environment of Pakistan, but security institutions were taking all possible steps to counter terrorism effectively.
Earlier in the day, an improvised explosive device blast on Peshawar’s Warsak Road left six people injured, including four children. Pakistan has experienced a rise in terror activities, particularly in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan, following the end of the ceasefire between the government and the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan in November of the previous year.
Meanwhile, Maulana Fazlur Rehman, the chief of Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam Fazl (JUI), expressed doubts about the feasibility of the upcoming general elections, citing “unrest” in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan. Rehman called for a conducive environment for election campaigning and clarified that he did not seek a delay in the elections but urged the government to provide suitable conditions for the electoral process.
He mentioned maintaining cordial relations with the PML-N and forming committees for seat adjustment in KP and Punjab. However, he noted that no contact had been made with the PPP regarding the elections.
