LAHORE, Oct 5: The Punjab government will not allow processions by winning candidates nor will it allow agitation by losers to ensure law and order.

Law and order will be maintained only by police not by army because of the situation on borders. However, some Rangers and army personnel will be kept at strategic places instead of detailing them in the field to address any emergency during the polls.

This was stated by Punjab Chief Secretary Hafeez Akhtar Randhawa at a news conference here at the Civil Secretariat on Saturday. He was accompanied by Punjab home, local government and information secretaries and the IGP.

He denied allegations of pre-poll rigging by the government and said these were being held in a fair and free manner.

The chief secretary said all arrangements had been made for the election to 148 National Assembly and 297 Punjab Assembly seats in the province, having 41.3 million registered voters. There were 29 most sensitive constituencies in the province, he said.

When asked to name them, he said in Jhang the government would have to be careful because of political friction and religious element. The home secretary and the IGP refused to give details of the remaining areas, saying it could create law and order.

Mr Randhawa said the government had given to the presiding officers a list of 250,000 polling staff for 37,000 polling stations. Besides, the staff had been trained and the election material delivered to the presiding officers.

He said the law and order plan was divided into three parts —- pre and post-polls and the polling day. In the first part, the police had run the deweaponization campaign arresting 20,000 people and recovering 25,000 weapons. Rockets and explosives, too, had been seized, he claimed.

The chief secretary said police had arrested 18,268 proclaimed offenders to preempt disturbance during the polls and strictly imposed a ban on carrying weapons at public places, sparing not even certain high profile candidates, he said.

He said the government was also ensuring the application of the code of conduct by the election commission, determining places for the candidates’ public meetings. There had been no favours while allotting the reserved places and in the case of Lahore, the Minar-i-Pakistan allotted to the PPP for its meeting on Oct 7 instead of the PML-Q on a first come first serve basis.

Mr Randhawa said police picketing and patrolling had been arranged for in a scientific manner. There were arrangements to avert cross-border terrorism, and the activists of proscribed organizations and militants were being watched.

He said a 250,000-man strong force had been detailed for the election duty. This included 60,000 policemen, 8,000 from the reserved police and Punjab constabulary and 150,000 additional (temporarily hired) police. There would be adequate security cover and patrolling for the safety and uninterrupted and untempered delivery of the results after the polling.

The chief secretary denied the allegations that the governor or he himself or any other government official were trying to influence the outcome of the elections.

He took exception to reports and comments in a section of the press, accusing Punjab government officials of pre-polls rigging and creating doubts about the holding of the elections.

“We continue to work without any ill-feeling or pressuring anyone,” he said, suggesting that some journalists should start writing fiction rather than working for newspapers.

Replying to questions, he said the contesting of the elections by the dependents of civil servants could be objected.