October 10, 2002	Thursday	Sha’aban 3, 1423

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ISLAMABAD, Oct 9: The Election Commission said on Wednesday anybody who would not be in possession of identity card would not be allowed to cast his vote, stressing that producing of identity card was mandatory provision which could not be waived of.

An announcement said an elector who presented himself at the polling station to vote, the presiding officer shall issue ballot paper to the elector only after satisfying himself about his identity only through his identity card.

Section 33 of the Representation of the People Act, 1976, provides that: “Where an elector presents himself at the polling station to vote, the Presiding Officer shall issue a ballot paper to the elector after satisfying himself about the identity of the elector and shall, for that purpose, require the elector to produce his identity card provided for in the National Registration Act, 1973, or issued under the National Database and Registration Authority Ordinance, 2002.”

NO PHOTOCOPY: The EC announcement further said that photocopy of the national identity card was not acceptable. The production of valid identity card, it added, was compulsory provisions of the law, “which cannot be waived.”

PRIORITY ORDER: In another announcement, the EC said some political parties had applied for change in the order of priority in the lists of candidates for women and minorities submitted to the Election Commission earlier.

It said the CEC had decided that only those requests would be entertained which were made under the signatures of the president of the concerned political party.

The CEC said the parties, who had applied for change in the order of priority of their nominees but their requests were not made by the party president, had been informed of the CEC decision.

It further said that at the request of the President of Pakistan Muslim League (N), Mrs Anjum Ara has now been placed at Priority No. 2 instead of Priority No. 6 in the list of candidates submitted by the said party for the seats reserved for women in the Provincial Assembly of the NWFP.