Security inside a polling station. PHOTO: @adeelabadshah
DERA ISMAIL KHAN: By-elections scheduled to be held on August 22 have been postponed for NA-25 constituency due to security concerns, Express News reported.
The NA 25 constituency includes the area of Dera Ismail Khan that has been declared to be extremely sensitive.
Express News correspondent Muhammad Bilal reported that the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) had postponed polls in that constituency for a few days only, and would take place as soon as the security situation improves.
Jamiat-Ulema-e-Islami Fazl (JUI-F) Chief Fazlur Rehman’s son Asmad Mehmood and Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaf’s (PTI) Dawar Kundi were taking part in the by-elections in NA 25.
The ECP on Tuesday announced that five security officials would be deployed at ‘normal’ polling stations whereas seven security officials in addition to army officials would be deployed at all polling stations declared ‘sensitive’.
The ECP decided on Monday to go ahead and hold by-elections in all 42 constituencies on August 22, despite flooding and security threats.
The decision, which was made at a meeting of the ECP chaired by acting Chief Election Commissioner Tassadiq Hussain Jilani, came after the commission turned down requests for postponement of by-elections in some constituencies of Balochistan and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa.
ECP imposes ban on cellphones inside polling stations
The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has imposed ban on keeping mobile phones during the polling of votes, Radio Pakistan reported.
Electioneering for by-elections to be held on Thursday will come to an end on August 20 at midnight. By-elections would be held on 42 seats of the national and provincial assemblies.
7,606 polling stations have been established for the by-elections. Of these‚ 3‚080 have been declared as normal‚ 2‚686 as sensitive and 1‚840 as highly sensitive.
The ECP has directed the Returning Officers directed to send unofficial results via fax immediately after the vote count and official results by using the computerised result management system.
The ECP has also imposed a ban on keeping mobile phones at the time of polling votes in the by-elections to be held on Thursday.
The ECP has issued the directive to the Presiding Officers to ensure the secrecy of vote.
COMMENTS (5)
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ECP banned the cell phones so people can't make videos of rigging.
Completely unjustified, makes me question the impartiality of this ECP. Also why aren't army personnel deployed on all polling stations? We know how politically biased our police is. Also banning cellphones? Eradicating probable rigging evidence beforehand.
ECP is such a joke.
JUIF was losing and bam ECP lends a helping hand
Diesel was short there to run the elections so ECP(N) postponed it for the Diesel to improve a bit...
Maulana sb was surely going to lose this seat to PTI's Dawar Kundi. Law and order situation is worst in other parts of the country. There is terrible flood in Punjab.If someone still says that ECP is not a party in this topi drama we call as elections, then its time to take medical checkup of his brain.