PESHAWAR, Oct 8: The Election Commission has issued circulars to administrations of the tribal agencies for ensuring women’s voting   and taking action against elements involved in barring them from exercising their right of franchise.

The member of the Election Commission from NWFP, Justice Qazi Ahsanullah Qureshi, speaking at a press conference on Tuesday, said the EC would not allow anybody to deprive women of their religious and constitutional right to vote.

He said foolproof measures had been adopted for the elections and 10,138,367 voters in NWFP and the Federally Administered Tribal Areas would exercise their right to vote. He said the number of voters in NWFP was 8,854,393, comprising 4,930,722 men and 3,923,671 women. In Fata, the number of voters is 1,283,974 — 814,921 men and 469,053 women.

Justice Qureshi, who was flanked by the provincial election commissioner, Mohammad Iltaf, and Deputy Election Commissioner Gul Akber, said 9,189 polling stations had been set up in NWFP and Fata with 22,757 polling booths. The number of polling stations in NWFP is 8,055, with 19,965 polling  booths, whereas 1,134 polling stations have been established in Fata with 2,792 booths.

He said 8,055 presiding officers, 29,930 assistant presiding officers and 19,965 polling officers would perform duties on the election day in NWFP and 1,134 presiding officers, 2,792 assistant presiding officers and  2,792 polling officers had been appointed in Fata.

Justice Qureshi said that before start of polling the ballot-boxes would  be shown to the polling agents of the candidates following which a certificate carrying their signatures would be issued and the boxes would be sealed. During the polling, the polling agents would be at liberty to raise any objection against a voter or any discrepancy, he said.

“The polling agents will mark their respective voters lists when votes are polled and they will have a clear picture of the number of votes polled,”  he said. The boxes would be taken to the counting room and the seals would be removed in the presence of the polling agents and observers, including journalists.

The EC member stated that counting would take place in the presence  of polling agents and observers by the presiding officers at each polling station, following which another certificate would be issued.

“There is no chance of rigging during any of the polling stages and the people levelling charges of computerized and scientific rigging are ignorant of the polling process,” he claimed.

He said the government had identified sensitive districts and polling stations where extraordinary measures would be adopted. He refuted the charges of pre-poll rigging by the government and said the chief election commissioner had taken notice of  different complaints and issued directives.