ISLAMABAD, May 11: Over 8,000 Islamabad police officials were deprived of their right to vote as their department failed to ensure postal balloting for them.

According to an official of the ministry of interior, over 9,500 police personnel were on duty during the elections. Besides the capital police, reserves were also called from AJK to ensure foolproof security in the capital city.

“How could I poll my vote in Jhang district since I am here for the last two days,” said a special branch police official performing duty in NA-48.

“I was not able to get a postal ballot despite the election commission’s strict guidelines to facilitate government servants in this regard. The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) had fixed April 25 as the last date for receipt of applications for postal balloting.

An official of the ECP while talking to Dawn said under the law the postal balloting facility was extended to persons in government service, members of the armed forces, holders of public offices, their wives and children who were registered voters and resided with them at a place other than their home constituency.

Persons detained in prison or held in other custody are also entitled to vote by postal balloting.

The ECP official added that persons appointed as presiding officers, assistant presiding officers and polling officers and the police personnel assigned duties at the polling stations had been advised to apply for postal ballot by April 25.

“We had also sent the same information to the Islamabad police but I am not sure how many of their officers were able to use the facility,” said the ECP official.

A police assistant sub-inspector added: “My department never approached me for the postal ballot and all I know is my duty timings which I have to follow.”

The ASI was registered as a voter in Sargodha district but he could not dispatch his postal ballot vote to his native town.

It is pertinent to mention that the 550 polling stations in NA-48 and NA-49 were guarded by the reserve and operational police personnel.

A police head constable in sector G-7, when asked whether he was able to cast his vote, responded: “Please let us do our work we are happy that the day is passing peacefully and that people are turning up in a big number.”

He said he had his vote registered in the Attock district. “Look at this message, this is my vote number and polling station number but this SMS from the ECP is just a dream.”

When his attention was drawn towards the value of his vote and his right to use it through the postal ballot, he said: “I was never approached by my department in this regard.”

He added: “We have no time for voting nor our department pressed us to go to poll. Look at our assignment chart we are working for more then 14 hours every day.”

An Islamabad Traffic Police official performing duty at Aabpara said: “My colleagues did tell me about the postal ballot but Iwas on a VIP duty despite the fact that the postal ballot was dispatched to me by the ECP.”

He said he missed the ECP deadline to vote through the postal ballot.When contacted, Chief Commissioner Islamabad Jawad Paul said all the relevant information and the ECP directions had been conveyed to the departments concerned, including the police.

He said the facility postal ballot was offered to everyone who was supposed to be on duty on the election day but if the police officials had missed their right to vote it is a concern.

“But they were on election duty which was a key assignment and all of them did well. But failing to vote is a matter of concern and we will look into the issue,” he added.

Meanwhile, despite repeated attempts, the inspector general of police, Bani Amin, was not available to comment.