Punjab approves deployment of 6,000 police personnel in GB for election duty

RAWALPINDI/ ISLAMABAD: Six thousand Punjab police personnel are being deployed in Gilgit-Baltistan ahead of the June 7 election, it emerged on Sunday as the PTI reiterated its allegations of pre-poll rigging. Punjab authorities had initially approved the deployment of 5,000 personnel to GB and later gave the nod for the deployment of 1,000 more police personnel. The approval for the first 5,000 was notified in a memo by the Punjab assistant inspector general (operations), which stated: “5,000 police personnel have been placed at the disposal of Gilgit-Baltistan police for election security duty. According to the memo, the Punjab police personnel will be equipped with anti-riot gear, and each bus used for their travel to GB will be escorted by four armed police personnel. It said the motor transport department’s senior superintendent of police would make transport arrangements and select buses in good condition with fitness certificates for the purpose. The drivers deputed to transport the police personnel to GB “must be well aware of the terrain they have to go through to reach the destination”, it added. Later, the Punjab AIG (operations) issued another memo, saying that “1,000 more police personnel […] are placed at the disposal of Gilgit-Baltistan police for making security arrangements during elections”. ‘Systematic pre-poll rigging’ Meanwhile, the PTI alleged on Sunday that “systematic pre-poll rigging” was under way ahead of GB elections on June 7. In a statement, PTI Information Secretary Sheikh Waqas Akram accused the federal government of engineering the “pre-poll rigging”. The party further asserted that the government was “brazenly misusing state resources to suppress democratic voices and undermine the electoral process even before a single vote is cast”. It further condemned what it described as the “partisan and unacceptable conduct” of the GB Election Commission, saying that the “commission issued a notice to the mother of for...

Original source: Dawn Pakistan