MIANWALI, Aug 25: Tension gripped most of the polling stations in Mianwali where the musclemen of candidates ‘monitored’ the situation their way. Poor planning and shortage of resources exposed the election commission arrangements in this part of the province as well. A low turnout disappointed the candidates, who were expecting a large number of people to use their right to franchize.
In urban areas voters faced a great deal of inconvenience in tracing their names in the lists provided to the polling staff. The lists were handwritten and at least eight pages were missing at each polling station. As a result, most of the people returned home without casting their votes.
Interestingly, some of the lists contained names of people known to none in their areas. The opposition groups took strong exception to the overall arrangements and issuance of lists showing names of unknown people.
A voter told Dawn that 50 to 70 voters were shown as residents of some houses that were actually abandoned. Such complaints emerged from several urban-area polling stations.
What surprised most of the voters was that men were allowed to set up camps at polling booths for women some of who complained about harassment. A number of woman voters did not turn up and those who did returned without participating in the process.
The administration seemed to be helpless before the Khidmat Ittehad and Rokhri groups backed by the ruling party and their supporters were given a free hand to roam about freely in and around the polling stations. The nomination of Rokhri family’s candidate for the district nazim’s slot by the chief minister allowed them to influence the polling staff.
Fears of clashes and sultry weather conditions were the other factors responsible for the low turnout.
The turnout was encouraging in rural areas, but women failed to exercise their right in most of the union councils in Gorangiwala and other surrounding villages. Most of the polling stations for women were set up in far-flung areas.
Besides two major groups — Rokhri and Khidmat Ittehad — the Tehrik-i-Insaaf fielded candidates for 10 union councils out of the 28 in NA 71 constituency of Imran Khan. A neck-and-neck contest was expected between the two major groups in 17 union councils, which were declared sensitive. The people generally lacked information or proper guidance about the polling process.
Reports emerging from the UC No 18 (Mianwali city) revealed that some women took away ballot papers and stamped for the PML-backed candidate.
BHAKKAR: The local polls in Bhakkar district were generally peaceful, except some incidents of brawls caused by mismanagement.
The election authorities failed to provide updated voters’ list at the polling stations where ballot papers of some candidates for general councillor seats were reported missing.
In the polling stations of three union councils of Mankera — UC No 41 Mani, Pati Bilanda, UC No 38 and UC No 23 — the ballot papers were wrongly distributed. Some of those had no symbols.
In most of the polling stations the process of voting could not start till 4.45pm.
Former Bhakkar district nazim Hameed Akbar Khan Niwani and his brother, Saeed Akbar Khan Niwani, the provincial prison minister, confirmed that the returning officers could not start voting till 4.45pm though the authorities concerned were timely informed about wrong distribution of papers.
A man named Muhammad Yasin at the UC No 2, Bhakkar, told Dawn that his vote was missing from the list. Other voters also took time in tracing the names, especially of all members of families.
It was also alleged that the EC had provided the lists of the general election of 2002 and local elections of 2001 at some polling stations.
An election commission official told Dawn on the request of anonymity that the authorities did not take notice of missing information.
Casting of bogus votes at polling stations for women and other malpractices also were reported at various places.