Islamabad, May 9 (ANI): The Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) of Pakistan has written to Army Chief General Ashfaq Pervez Kayani saying that the current security plan is inadequate, and has asked him to deploy army personnel at all the sensitive stations across the country. Stressing that ensuring free and fair elections will be a joint effort, CEC Fakhruddin G Ebrahim said the presence of the army at polling booths would eradicate the chances of rigging and violence, reports The Express Tribune.
The CEC has declared 12,716 polling stations as sensitive. Since April, the Pakistani Taliban have killed more than 100 people during campaign rallies in a bid to undermine elections they regard as un-Islamic. Pakistan”s military said it would send tens of thousands of troops to polling stations and counting centres to prevent the Taliban from disrupting the election. Army spokesman Major General Asim Bajwa said 300,000 security officials, including 32,000 troops, had been deployed in Punjab, the most populous province. Another 96,000 security forces would be deployed in the northwest of Pakistan, where the Taliban operate from strongholds. The polls mark the first time that a civilian government will complete a full term and hand over to another administration. (ANI)