ISLAMABAD: The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has decided to deploy Rangers and FC personnel outside the provincial assemblies and parliament house for the upcoming Senate polls and to empower returning officers to punish those breaching secrecy of ballot or attempting to compromise election transparency in any other manner after holding summary trial on the spot.

The returning officers, who will have the power of first class magistrate for the March 3 election, can cancel the ballot paper if a voter is found taking it out of the polling station or breaching its secrecy in any manner.

The decisions were taken at a meeting, which was presided over by Chief Election Commis­sioner retired Justice Sardar Mohammad Raza and attended by all the returning officers for the Senate elections, held on Wednesday to review arrangements for the March 3 polls.

Rangers, FC to be deployed outside assemblies on March 3

It was decided that the returning officers would hold summary trial in case of capturing of polling station, deliberate tampering of ballot paper, taking ballot paper out of polling station or handing it over to some irrelevant person, using a fake ballot paper, breaching secrecy of ballot paper, revealing priority of vote to a candidate or candidates or taking any step calculated at compromising transparency of the polls, and punish them under Sections 174, 184 and 185 of the Election Act, 2017.

The returning officers were asked to ensure that the polls take place in a peaceful manner. In case of any irregularity or mismanagement, they would be authorised to bring the matter to the knowledge of the election commission and suspend the electoral process, the meeting decided.

The ECP also directed the returning officers to ensure that each voter enters the polling station from the same point and strict implementation of a ban on taking mobile phones inside the polling stations.

On a returning officer’s suggestion, the ECP decided to deploy the Rangers and Frontier Corps contingents outside the polling stations. A letter seeking deployment of the Rangers and FC personnel was sent to the interior secretary soon after the meeting.

“In order to conduct Senate elections 2018 in all the provinces and the federal capital Islamabad in a peaceful manner and to avoid any untoward incident on the poll day, the Election Commission of Pakistan, in terms of Article 220 and 245 of the Constitution has decided for deployment of sufficient strength of Pakistan Rangers / Frontier Corps outside the premises of provincial assemblies of Punjab, Sindh, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Balochistan and Parliament House, Islamabad.

“It would be appreciated if you could kindly issue necessary directions to the directors general of Rangers in Punjab and Sindh and the inspectors general of Frontier Corps in Balo­chistan and Khyber Pakh­tun­khwa for deployment of Pakistan Rangers/ Frontier Corps outside the buildings/ premises of all the four provincial assemblies and parliament house, Islamabad on March 3,” stated the letter signed by ECP additional secretary Dr Akhtar Nazir.

Published in Dawn, March 1st, 2018