The image shows the caretaker Federal Minister for Commerce, Industries, and Production Gohar Ejaz, who was appointed as the Minister of Interior on Wednesday. This new role comes after the former interior minister Sarfraz Bugti resigned last month for personal reasons and later joined the PPP to contest the upcoming general elections. As the 48th interior minister of Pakistan, Gohar has already assumed office and met with senior personnel at the ministry to be briefed on its affairs and subsidiaries.
This appointment comes at a time when Pakistan has seen an increase in terror attacks, prompting concerns about security during the upcoming polls. As a result, the caretaker federal cabinet has approved the deployment of troops and civil armed forces personnel on polling stations and sensitive constituencies during the upcoming elections. This decision was made due to a shortage of 275,000 security officials required for election duty, as reported by the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP). The ECP specifically mentioned shortfalls in security personnel in different regions, leading to the request for immediate deployment of Pakistan Army and other security forces at polling stations.
The ECP highlighted a specific case in Islamabad, where a shortfall of 4,500 personnel could disrupt the electoral process. This request for deployment of army personnel comes in response to a surge in militant attacks, which have resulted in the deaths of over 700 security personnel and civilians in the first nine months of 2023.