Fears of violence

Contrary to what was being feared – or wished – the February 8 election is going ahead as planned. There were some apprehensions that a deteriorating law and order situation just days ahead of the general elections could lead to a pause in the election but after a meeting on Thursday, which had in attendance the ECP, caretaker interior minister, interior secretary, intelligence officials as well as chief secretaries and police chiefs of Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Caretaker Interior Minister Gohar Ejaz put to rest all speculations about a delay in polls, saying that the ECP and caretaker government will ensure the conduct of the polls on the designated date come what may. The meeting at the ECP took place a day after the army’s top brass issued a stern warning against any attempts to disrupt the upcoming elections. Almost 51 per cent of the polling stations have been categorised ‘sensitive’ by the ECP for the upcoming general elections, and the last few weeks have seen a surge in violence in not just Balochistan and KP but there have been political clashes in Karachi and other cities also. Rehan Zeb Khan, an independent candidate contesting for a National Assembly seat from Bajaur, was murdered on Wednesday by unidentified armed assailants.

On Sunday, violent clashes erupted in separate incidents in different parts of the country. With elections less than two weeks away, such violence does not bode well for the country. Miscreants targeted election offices of the PPP and the National Party (NP) in Balochistan on Sunday with grenades. Separately, an MQM worker was killed, and a PPP worker injured in clashes between workers of the PPP and MQM-Pakistan in Karachi. This is of course a worrying development. The leadership of both the PPP and the MQM-P must rein in their workers and supporters; Karachi cannot afford political violence when it has taken extreme measures to control violence in the metropolis. It is no secret that both the PPP and MQM have been indulging in a political turf war in the city. That the PPP now has a mayor in Karachi has also escalated the tensions between the two parties. Law-enforcement agencies can only do so much; at the end of the day, it is the PPP leadership and their counterparts in the MQM who have to give a call for peace to their workers.

Meanwhile, PTI workers clashed with the police in Karachi on Sunday, which left at least seven officers with injuries. In several cities where PTI workers and leaders had taken out rallies on Sunday, there was a crackdown on PTI supporters/members by law enforcement. We have seen far too many of these ‘crackdowns’ recently and there is no justification for stopping a peaceful protest. However, all parties need to remember that ‘peaceful’ must be the operative word here. This is especially so for the PTI whose members are already in trouble after the May 9 riots. Already, the party is being treated like a pariah. Further acts of violent protests will only make the situation worse. Pakistan does not have a happy history when it comes to election-time violence. A mix of terrorist violence and political violence is alarming. The election must take place. And it is on the caretaker government along with law enforcement, ECP, and political parties to ensure peace remains paramount as voters decide their future.