The interim Interior Minister Sarfraz Ahmad Bugti stated that the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) will have full security for the upcoming general elections to be held in a peaceful environment. The elections are scheduled for February 8, and the ECP had requested the deployment of the army and civil armed forces outside polling stations due to a shortfall of police personnel. Bugti also assured that the caretaker government would provide all necessary facilities for transparently conducting the general elections.
Bugti emphasized the need for political parties to cooperate with law enforcement agencies (LEAs) before arranging public meetings or corner meetings for election campaigns. He also mentioned that timely information about public gatherings would help security institutions in making better arrangements for them.
Bugti commented on the increase in terrorism incidents in the country, stating that LEAs were fully alert to control the menace of terrorism. He also mentioned that the country’s enemies were trying to sabotage the peaceful environment of Pakistan and that security institutions were taking all possible steps to defeat terrorism.
There have been recent incidents of terrorism in different parts of the country, especially in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan. Maulana Fazlur Rehman of the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam party also expressed doubt over the feasibility of the upcoming general elections due to unrest and security threats in KP and Balochistan. He called for a peaceful environment for election campaigning and urged the government to provide the necessary conditions for elections.