QUETTA: The Balochistan government on Friday reviewed arrangements for free and fair general elections and to ensure foolproof security for related activities across the province.

In a meeting, Chief Secretary Shakeel Qadir said election commission’s monitoring teams should stay active to ensure the implementation of the election code of conduct in all districts.

The provincial election commissioner said 5,067 polling stations and 15,002 polling booths would be set up for elections across Balochistan. The final list of candidates would be released on Jan 13, he added. The training of the staff for the elections would conclude by the end of this month.

Tribunal accepts 61 appeals

Meanwhile, the Balochistan election tribunal heard 85 more appeals on Friday filed by candidates.

It accepted 61 appeals and issued notices to ROs and other respondents on 12 appeals and dismissed four filed against the rejection of nomination papers.

The tribunal also reserved decisions on four applications. Justice Kakar referred three applications to another tribunal for hearing.

The appeal filed by former governor Syed Zahoor Ahmed Agha against the rejection of his nomination papers from NA-263 was also accepted.

Published in Dawn, January 6th, 2024