MANSEHRA: The Election Commission has increased the number of polling stations for men and women in Mansehra district from 600 to 750 for the May 30 local government elections.

“We first reserved 600 polling stations in the district, including men-only, women-only and combined but now the number has been increased to 750 for the comfort of voters,” assistant election commissioner Mohammad Zulfiqar told reporters on Friday.

Zulfiqar said 9,000 members of the polling staff would conduct and supervise the upcoming local government elections in the district.

He said the polling staff had been taken from almost all government departments.

“The scrutiny process will be over on Saturday. The candidates, whose nomination forms were rejected, could file appeals with local judiciary for review of their cases,” he said.

The assistant election commissioner said appeals could be filed from April 26 to April 28 with the local judiciary in the respective tehsils of the district.

He said 6,014 male and female candidates had submitted nomination papers with the Election Commission for 59 district and tehsils words and 194 village and neighbourhood councils and that the commission would do its level best for the early disposal of appeals.

Zulfiqar said election symbols would be allotted on May 5.

He said he was hopeful that the elections would be peaceful in the district.

Imran Khan’s PTI and Nawaz Sharif’s PML-N have fielded the most candidates in 59 district and tehsil wards in Mansehra for the upcoming local body elections.Independents are also in the electoral field in large numbers.

Published in Dawn, April 25th, 2015

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