t-Gen Abdul Qadir Baloch (retired) - veteran soldier, seasoned politician and former federal minister - faces numerous challenges as he prepares to run in the upcoming elections. The boundaries of his constituency, NA-260, have been redrawn recently. It now spans over 100,000 square kilometres. The security situation in Balochistan further complicates the effective campaigning challenge. It is going to be difficult and expensive.

“Campaigning in a constituency like NA-260 within the short period allowed for the purpose is a daunting task. I have to reach out to my voters by visiting every village and town,” says Baloch, who has recently joined the Pakistan Peoples Party. “I am also concerned about the expenses,” he says.

Following the recent delimitation carried out based on the latest census, NA-260 includes Chaghi, Nuskhi, Kharan and Washuk districts. A significant portion of the constituency shares borders with Iran and Afghanistan.

The constituency now houses 1,040,000 voters. Its 100,000 square kilometers area almost equals that of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (101,741 sk).

The constituency is also characterised by rugged terrain and limited infrastructure and communication networks. This makes it difficult for a candidate to visit the voters.

Balochistan has 44 percent of the country’s land. NA-260 alone represents 12 percent of Pakistan’s land area and 28 percent of Balochistan’s.

In the 2018 general election, Balochistan National Party’s Hashim Notezai had carried the constituency.

Balochistan has a history of conflict and instability. This situation poses substantial risks for candidates and campaign workers, leaving them vulnerable to threats of violence and intimidation.

Over the past few months, many political leaders have been targeted or attacked by various militant groups, including some Baloch separatist organisations and the Islamic State of Khorasan Province.

Considering these developments, most political parties are worried about the safety of their activists, particularly in Kharan and Noshki districts, where the threat of separatists violence is significant. During the previous general election, Baloch’s election office was attacked twice with hand grenades. His driver was tragically killed in the Kharan district.

“On account of the security situation and the expenses, visiting every corner of the constituency is going to be difficult. The election commission should reassess the delimitation,” says Baloch.

The candidates will have a hard time visiting their voters and mobilising them. The distance from Washuk to Nushki is more than 320 kilometres. A candidate must travel more than six hours to cover just these two districts.

The distance from Washuk to Nushki is more than 320 kilometres. A candidate must travel more than six hours to cover just these two districts. The distance from Nushki to Taftan, the border crossing with Iran, is more than 480 kilometres.

“It is like trying to cover a desert with a blanket. No matter how much effort one puts in, one cannot reach every part of this vast constituency,” says Hazir Baloch, a Jamiat-i-Ulema Islam-Fazl supporter in Chaghi. “We have a harder job than the candidates in constituencies with more dense populations.”

Jameel, a resident of Budak, a village in the Kharan desert, says the villagers face a challenging journey of 12 to 14 kilometres on motorcycles to reach Bope-i-Rack No. 2 to cast their votes.

A social activist in Dalbandin, formerly associated with student politics, worries that the vastness of the area also makes it easier for candidates to engage in vote-buying and other electoral malpractices.

According to reports citing official data from the 2023 digital census Balochistan’s population has reached 20.35 million, representing a 65 percent increase over the 2017 census. Officials involved in the enumeration process have attributed the large growth to undercounting in the 2017 census.

In a press release on September 30, the Free and Fair Elections Network identified five constituencies in Balochistan exceeding 10 percent of the population quota for a single NA seat. At least three of these constituencies are made up of four districts each.

Rashid Chaudhary, an expert at FAFEN, says, population should not have been the sole determinant of constituency boundaries. “Election law does mention other principles as well, such as homogeneity, communication facilities,” he says.

“The parliament should come up with solutions for the problems caused by large distances in the geographically vast constituencies,” he said.

Lawyer Habib Kareem, a rights activist from Kharan currently based in Islamabad, says the factors outlined in Section 20(1) of the Elections Act, 2017, include population distribution, physical features, administrative boundaries and communication facilities.

He says these factors should be given equal significance and argues that the current delimitation of NA-260 does not comply with Sections 20(1) and 20(3).

“The physical features of a constituency must be considered as much as its population. Not only the population of NA-260 exceeds the ten percent variation in population but its geographical vastness also leaves a big question mark on facilities of communication and public convenience,” he said.

The writer is a journalist and researcher specialising in security and political developments in Balochistan. He is currently affiliated with The Khorasan Diary, based in Islamabad. His twitter handle is @ImtiazBaloch_