ECP to seek PM’s intervention on relocating FC troops

Officials say it will be difficult to maintain law and order during polls.

PESHAWAR:

The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has sought the intervention of Prime Minister Raja Pervaiz Ashraf for bringing back Frontier Constabulary (FC) platoons to Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) for increased security during the general elections.

Officials of the K-P Home and Tribal Affairs Department told The Express Tribune that since the  ECP has been tasked to conduct elections, it has stressed on relocating FC troops stationed in other parts of the country.

“This is what we have been requesting the federal government. Elections are right ahead, but we are short of 2,253 FC personnel who are deployed outside the province. It will be difficult for us to maintain law and order during elections,” said one official while requesting anonymity.



He added K-P Chief Secretary Ghulam Dastagir, Secretary for Home and Tribal Affairs Muhammad Azam Khan and Inspector General Police Akbar Khan Hoti along with other officials conveyed their concerns during a meeting with ECP authorities.

Confirming the development, Muhammad Azam said the issue had been raised in an ECP meeting where all chief and home secretaries were present. It was conveyed that if the government wants to hold peaceful elections, infiltration of arms and militants from tribal areas must be stopped.

“This threat can only be stopped if the FC is deployed along the border of tribal and settled areas; and our concerns are being considered by the ECP,” added Azam. “By doing so, it will not only help us hold general polls in a peaceful manner in our province, but in Sindh, Punjab and other parts of the country as well.”

The K-P government has repeatedly requested the federal government to return FC platoons deployed in Karachi, Islamabad and Gilgit-Baltistan in order to maintain law and order in the restive province. These requests, however, have been turned down.

Upon the refusal of the federal government, the provincial government filed an application before the Peshawar High Court (PHC) in May 2012, saying it had insufficient manpower to handle the security situation. The application was later converted into a petition.

According to FC officials, a total of 80 FC platoons are currently present in K-P, 35 in Sindh while 140 are assisting the army in military operations in the tribal areas.

During a hearing of the case on November 6, 2012, the interior ministry told the PHC that FC troops had been deployed at 80 security check posts in Islamabad, including the Foreign Office, Capital Development Authority and to provide security for VVIPs.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 12^th, 2013.