F.P. Report
ISLAMABAD: The stage is set for by-elections in around two dozen National and provincial assembly constituencies today (Sunday).
The campaign for by-polls on 22 NA, PA seats ended on midnight of April 19 and 20. According to the commission, by-elections will be held for five vacant seats of the National Assembly; 12 of the Punjab Assembly, two each of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan legislatures as well as one of the Sindh Assembly.
All necessary arrangements for the by-elections have been finalised by ECP. Polling will commence at 8 am and continue until 5 pm. Over 6.23 million ballot papers have been printed for the elections. Specifically, white ballot papers have been printed for both the national and provincial assemblies.
In Punjab, 174 candidates are vying for positions, while Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has 49 candidates in the running. Punjab boasts 21.77 million male and 18.67 million female registered voters, who will exercise their democratic rights. Meanwhile, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa will see 1.471 million voters participate in the by-elections. Punjab will host 663 male, 649 female, and 1289 joint polling stations, with a total of 892 polling stations set up in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
For the National Assembly constituency NA-196 in Sindh, 4.239 million voters are eligible to vote. Five candidates will compete in this constituency, which will have 933 polling stations. In Balochistan, 125 polling stations have been established across two provincial constituencies, where 163,000 voters will cast their votes.
To address any concerns or complaints, a control room will be set up in the provincial election commissioners’ offices. It is pertinent to mention here that Asifa Bhutto has been elected unopposed from National Assembly Constituency NA-207 Shaheed Benazirabad, while Zubair Junejo has been elected unopposed from Sindh Assembly Constituency PS 80 Dadu.
Meanwhile, on request of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) seeking strict security measures during the by-elections in the country, the federal government has approved deployment of Pakistan Army and Civil Armed Forces (CAF) troops.
The government would use the armed forces’ units as a quick response force. The Ministry of Interior has issued an order in this regard. The notification mentions that the CAF and Pakistan Army units would be used as second and third tiers of security and they would be available with immediate effect till April 22 in 21 constituencies.
“The exact number of troops, date/period, area and mode of deployment would be worked out by the ECP in consultation with all concerned stakeholders based on ground requirement/ assessment. The date of de-requisitioning of the said deployment will be decided subsequently after mutual consultation among all stakeholders,” the notification stated. Earlier, the Punjab government requested the interior ministry to suspend mobile internet services in the province’s 13 districts and tehsils on April 21 (today) owing to the by-polls.
The request has been made to maintain law and order situation in the province and avoid any untoward incident. In a letter to the interior ministry, the provincial home department requested the suspension. According to the letter, the request for the suspension of mobile internet services has been made for Lahore, Sheikhupura, Kasur, Sadiqabad, Kot Chutta, and Dera Ghazi Khan districts.
