‘No one knows Mr X,Y,Z, as ECP’s task is to hold fair polls’

ISLAMABAD: Alarmed by the presence of armed personnel in various constituencies of Punjab and fearing violence in the upcoming by-election, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) Thursday wrote to the Ministry of Interior for increasing the number of Quick Response Force (QRF) and flag march.

The ECP also rejected outright the allegations of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan and SVP Dr Shireen Mazari with reference to the by-polls. It said "No one knows Mr X,Y or Z and the commission will continue to play its constitutional role without any provocation and pressure."

Imran Khan has accused the ECP of having a fraud plan for the by-election and said that one Mr X is sitting in Lahore and he has sent Mr Y to Multan for poll fraud. The spokesperson emphasised the chief election commissioner has no need to meet Hamza Shehbaz and Maryam Nawaz secretly, as politicians themselves come to meet the chief election commissioner, saying it was easy to blame, so if there is any evidence, bring it out. He said the ECP’s task was to hold transparent elections without any pressure.

Earlier, Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Sikandar Sultan Raja spoke to Interior Minister and Secretary Interior over the matter. The development comes in view of security concerns and the commission also called for ensuring the army personnel’s deployment outside the polling stations in four constituencies of Lahore and one constituency of Multan. It noted the deployment of Rangers was agreed earlier but according to recent reports, the risk of unrest and violence has increased.

The letter reads, “In other constituencies also, law enforcement agencies should be instructed to be vigilant, to deal with incidents of violence before or during elections. These measures are necessary due to the rise and polarisation of political temperatures in Pakistan”.

The ECP noted that if pre-emptive steps were not taken with reference to violent incidents, then things may be out of control. In a related development, the ECP Thursday wrote to the chief secretary and IGP to take pre-emptive steps. The ECP also held a meeting here at its secretariat in relation to the upcoming by-election and reviewed preparations from various angles. The ECP fears that presence of these armed personnel could lead to violence besides jeopardising the electoral process in the constituencies.

“It is also being reported that some notables are planning to bring miscreants from other areas/provinces to create violence and harassment on poll day. Such criminal activities cannot be condoned at any cost. The presence of armed personnel is likely to hinder the voters and peaceful conduct of poll while being violative of the code of conduct,” the ECP said in the letter.

Meanwhile, CEC Sikandar Sultan Raja Thursday personally spoke to the Chief Secretary Punjab, IGP Punjab and senior officials of the concerned agencies over telephone and asked them to ensure a peaceful atmosphere during the by-elections.

He presided over the Election Commission meeting here to review the preparations for the keenly-awaited electoral process in 20 constituencies of the Punjab Assembly for peaceful conduct of the elections on July 17.

The forum gave more instructions to all the concerned that display of all types of weapons in any constituency was prohibited and that any person, candidate or party worker was not allowed to display arms.

Provincial Election Commissioner, Punjab, all district returning officers, returning officers and district monitoring officers were directed to inform law enforcement agencies in writing if any miscreant elements disturb the election environment anywhere during the preparation of polling, polling results before polling and said strict action should be ensured against such persons in accordance with the Constitution and law.

The forum contended that case should be referred to the Election Commission so that such candidate is prosecuted under the election laws. The Election Commission also clarified that it is the responsibility of the Election Commission and law enforcement agencies to ensure peaceful conduct of elections and provide a peaceful environment to voters during elections. Therefore, the meeting emphasised all institutions should discharge this responsibility as a national duty.