HYDERABAD, Aug 17: Sindh Chief Minister Dr Arbab Ghulam Rahim has said foolproof arrangements have been made to maintain law and order and conduct the local body elections in a peaceful atmosphere.

Talking to journalists while inaugurating a sports complex in Qasimabad on Tuesday, he said he himself was monitoring the law and order situation. He said he would continue to monitor the situation till the elections were over.

Answering a question, he claimed that except for one or two minor incidents in Mirpurkhas and Karachi, no major incident in connection with the polls had been reported till date.

He said the Election Commission was responsible for holding elections while maintenance of law and order at polling stations was the responsibility of the government. However, he added, polling officers had also been empowered to call forces in case of any emergency. “No one can object to the presence of the army as we have always relied on the army to meet natural disasters”, he said. Nevertheless, he made it clear, law-enforcement agencies were capable of maintaining law and order and hoped that no untoward incident would take place during the election process.

About the sports complex, the chief minister said the Rs32.488 million project was pending since 1997 due to lack of interest by previous administrations.