Global News Desk:
At least five individuals lost
their lives in militant attacks during Pakistan's general election today.
Mobile phone services were temporarily suspended nationwide, and certain land
borders were closed to uphold law and order.
The interior ministry said it
took the steps after at least 26 people were killed in two explosions near
electoral candidates' offices in the southwestern province of Balochistan on
Wednesday. Islamic State later claimed responsibility for those attacks.
"As a result of the recent
incidents of terrorism in the country precious lives have been lost, security
measures are essential to maintain the law and order situation and deal with
possible threats," the ministry said in a post on messaging platform X.
Thousands of troops were deployed
on the streets and at polling stations across the country and borders with Iran
and Afghanistan were temporarily closed.
Four policemen were killed in a
bomb blast and firing targeting a police patrol in the Kulachi area of Dera
Ismail Khan district in the northwest, local police chief Rauf Qaisrani said.
One person was killed when gunmen
opened fire on a security forces vehicle in Tank, about 40 km (25 miles) to the
north.
Grenade attacks were also
reported in different parts of Balochistan, but polling remained unaffected
since there were no casualties, Saeed Ahmed Umrani, commissioner of the Makran
division, told Reuters.
In spite of the security worries
and bitter winter cold, long queues began forming at polling stations hours
before voting was due to start. "The country is at stake, why should I
come late?" said 86-year-old Mumtaz, a housewife a decade older than
Pakistan itself as she queued up in Islamabad.
Besides militant violence, the
election is also being held in the midst of a deep economic crisis and in a
highly polarised political environment, and many analysts believe no clear
winner may emerge.
The move to suspend mobile
networks sparked criticism from leaders of opposition parties, with the
Pakistan Peoples Party's Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, the 35-year-old son of former
premier Benazir Bhutto, calling for its "immediate restoration".
"(I) have asked my party to
approach both ECP (Election Commission of Pakistan) and the courts for this
purpose," he posted on X.
Chief Election Commissioner
Sikandar Sultan Raja said the decision on mobile networks was made by "law
and order agencies" following Wednesday's violence and the commission
would not interfere in the matter.
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Jailed former Prime Minister
Imran Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, in a post on X, called on
people to remove passwords from their personal Wifi accounts "so anyone in
the vicinity can have access to internet on this extremely important day".
Some voters also expressed anger
at the move to suspend mobile services.
"Due to this, the
communication with voters and others are very difficult ... we are facing so
many problems due to the internet closure," said 50-year-old Mehmood
Chaudry, a school teacher who cast his vote in the city of Rawalpindi.
The network suspension also
follows Imran Khan's call to his supporters, who had clashed with security
forces while protesting his arrest last year, to wait outside polling booths
until results are announced.
Khan cast his vote via postal
ballot from a prison in Rawalpindi on Thursday morning, his party's media team
told Reuters.
Unofficial first results in the
election are expected a few hours after voting closes at 5 p.m. (1200 GMT) and
a clearer picture is likely to emerge early on Friday.
The main contests are expected to
be between candidates backed by Khan, whose party won the last national
election, and the Pakistan Muslim League of three-time premier Nawaz Sharif,
who is considered the front-runner.
Analysts say there may be no
clear winner and the powerful military could play a role but Sharif emphasised
the need for a "clear majority".
"Don't talk about a
coalition government. It is very important for a government to get a clear
majority...it should not be relying on others," Sharif told reporters
after casting his vote in the eastern city of Lahore.
The military has dominated the
nuclear-armed country either directly or indirectly in its 76 years of
independence but for several years it has maintained it does not interfere in
politics.
"The deciding factor is
which side the powerful military and its security agencies are on," said
Abbas Nasir, a columnist. "Only a huge turnout in favour of (Khan's) PTI
can change its fortunes."
He added: "Economic
challenges are so serious, grave, and the solutions so very painful that I am
unsure how anyone who comes to power will steady the ship."
If the election does not result
in a clear majority for anyone, as analysts are predicting, tackling multiple
challenges will be tricky - foremost being seeking a new bailout programme from
the International Monetary Fund (IMF) after the current one expires in March.(News Source By The Daliy Star)