MUZAFFARGARH: It was a tense day for voters and police officials in the by-poll constituencies of PP-217 in Multan, PP-272 and PP-273 in Muzaffargarh and PP-282 in Layyah on Sunday. The police arrested Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) leader Shehbaz Gill in Jatoi for resisting police and keeping FC guards, while in Multan, PTI leader Shah Mahmood Qureshi got a notice from the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) for ‘raiding’ a factory in the by-poll constituency.

Tensions prevailed in Jatoi tehsil of Muzaffargarh where the police arrested Mr Gill who was present to oversee polling activities on behalf of the party. The police raided a cotton factory where Mr Gill was present with armed guards in the Frontier Constabulary (FC) uniform and arrested him. He alleged he was arrested without a warrant, and before the arrest, he was detained for three hours. He said the police action only aimed at wasting his time. The police, however, said they raided the place to send FC guards back to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. A local police DSP said they were taking action on the orders of the ECP.

An ECP statement said they ordered Gill’s arrest for violating sections 15 and 16 of the election code and that he was creating the law and order situation.

PTI workers and Mr Gill’s guards also resisted the police. Before his arrest, Shehbaz Gill was very active at polling stations. He said polling agents were expelled from polling station Nos 44 and 46 by the polling staff. Later, an ECP statement denied charges. Muzaffargarh Deputy Commissioner Ali Annan Qamar and DPO Tariq Willayat also sent their personal staff to check the status of FC guards.

PTI candidate Moazzam Khan Jatoi alleged the police arrested his supporters and but the ECP and the DPO did not take any action. In Basti Ramzan, PTI and PML-N supporters fought each other where PML-N supporters Allah Wasaya, brother of a sitting DPO, and former PPP ticket holder Jameel Shah were allegedly polling fake votes for PML-N candidate Zehra Basit Bukhari. The Shah Jamal police arrested both and released them when learned that one of them was the brother of a DPO. They were released after they furnished a surety bond.

In Multan, the ECP issued notice to PTI leader Shah Mahmood Qureshi for ‘raiding’ a factory in the PP-217 constituency. The ECP asked him to explain the raid within a day. Mr Qureshi alleged workers had been detained inside the factory to favour PML-N candidates.

He alleged some election polling staff was busy stamping ballots in favour of the PML-N candidate. The ECP denied the allegations.

At polling station No 14, some women complained that the polling staff forced them to vote for the PML-N candidate. PTI workers gather outside the polling station and protested against the staff.

Published in Dawn, July 18th, 2022