Balochistan elections: 2008 electoral rolls may be used for Dera Bugti vote
Chief secretary says it is difficult to trace displaced residents of the area.
Chief secretary says it is difficult to trace displaced residents of the area.
ISLAMABAD:
The chief secretary of Balochistan hinted on Wednesday that residents of Dera Bugti will be allowed to cast their votes in the upcoming general elections according to the 2008 voters’ list, instead of updated lists.
“The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) will be requested to revise the 2008 list of voters for the inhabitants of Dera. According to the list from 2008, the number of registered voters was 95,000. That has been reduced to 64,000 in the updated lists,” said Chief Secretary Babar Fateh Yaqoob, in his appearance before a three-member bench of the apex court in connection with a case on the deteriorating law and order situation in Balochistan.
Yaqoob contended that it was difficult to trace the displaced residents of Dera Bugti after they leave the area for either Multan or Karachi.
The chief secretary was responding to the queries of the bench headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry on law and order during the upcoming general elections.
Home Secretary Balochistan Akbar Khan Durrani said there were eight districts — Dera Bugti, Kohlu, Kalat, Khuzdar, Punjgor, Turbat, Gwadar and Makran — that needed extra help and effort by the government to strengthen its writ, especially before the elections.
A representative of the Balochistan High Court Bar Association informed the court that law and order had been deteriorating further and no progress had been made to recover the missing persons.
Provincial Inspector General Police Mushtaq Sukhaira said the police had traced the workshop where the ambulance used for the devastating blast at Alamdar Road and the water tanker that was used in Hazara Town bombings had been fitted with explosives.
The IGP also told the court that a gang of miscreants had been apprehended for using children as “shields” to carry out terrorist attacks in the province.
Addressing the issue of missing persons, DIG CID Balochistan submitted a report, maintaining that there were just 48 persons that had yet to be traced and some 18 missing men had returned home safe and sound.
Following the statements of 12 missing persons after they returned, the Balochistan police asked the Frontier Corps (FC) to trace the whereabouts of 10 military personnel who were accused of abducting the missing persons, according to the DIG CID.
The report also contained the response of the FC, who said that some of the officers did not belong to the organisation and others had gone back to the Pakistan Army.
After hearing the arguments, the bench deferred the hearing till April 4 for further proceedings.
Published in The Express Tribune, March 21st, 2013.
The chief secretary of Balochistan hinted on Wednesday that residents of Dera Bugti will be allowed to cast their votes in the upcoming general elections according to the 2008 voters’ list, instead of updated lists.
“The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) will be requested to revise the 2008 list of voters for the inhabitants of Dera. According to the list from 2008, the number of registered voters was 95,000. That has been reduced to 64,000 in the updated lists,” said Chief Secretary Babar Fateh Yaqoob, in his appearance before a three-member bench of the apex court in connection with a case on the deteriorating law and order situation in Balochistan.
Yaqoob contended that it was difficult to trace the displaced residents of Dera Bugti after they leave the area for either Multan or Karachi.
The chief secretary was responding to the queries of the bench headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry on law and order during the upcoming general elections.
Home Secretary Balochistan Akbar Khan Durrani said there were eight districts — Dera Bugti, Kohlu, Kalat, Khuzdar, Punjgor, Turbat, Gwadar and Makran — that needed extra help and effort by the government to strengthen its writ, especially before the elections.
A representative of the Balochistan High Court Bar Association informed the court that law and order had been deteriorating further and no progress had been made to recover the missing persons.
Provincial Inspector General Police Mushtaq Sukhaira said the police had traced the workshop where the ambulance used for the devastating blast at Alamdar Road and the water tanker that was used in Hazara Town bombings had been fitted with explosives.
The IGP also told the court that a gang of miscreants had been apprehended for using children as “shields” to carry out terrorist attacks in the province.
Addressing the issue of missing persons, DIG CID Balochistan submitted a report, maintaining that there were just 48 persons that had yet to be traced and some 18 missing men had returned home safe and sound.
Following the statements of 12 missing persons after they returned, the Balochistan police asked the Frontier Corps (FC) to trace the whereabouts of 10 military personnel who were accused of abducting the missing persons, according to the DIG CID.
The report also contained the response of the FC, who said that some of the officers did not belong to the organisation and others had gone back to the Pakistan Army.
After hearing the arguments, the bench deferred the hearing till April 4 for further proceedings.
Published in The Express Tribune, March 21st, 2013.