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Published 25 Apr, 2013 11:52am

ECP holds meeting to review election security

ISLAMABAD: The Election Commission of Pakistan held on Thursday a key security meeting in Pakistan's federal capital city to review security during the upcoming elections and safety of election candidates. The meeting follow a string of blasts in Balochistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Sindh in which more than ten people were killed within a span of 24 hours between Tuesday and Wednesday.

The meeting, chaired by Chief Election Commissioner Justice (r) Fakhruddin G. Ibrahim, reviewed the security situation in the country and would decide whether to deploy Military in sensitive polling stations on May 11.

Justice (r) Ibrahim had earlier said that holding elections in a conducive and peaceful atmosphere was the topmost priority of the election commission.

All the police chiefs of the four provinces and secretary defense along with secretary Interior Ministry and IG Frontier Corps attended the session.

Political leaders in Balochistan, KPK and Sindh have demanded more security for themselves and called upon the caretaker regime and election commission to provide security. Center left parties including Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) and Awami National Party (ANP) have drastically cut their election campaigning in the wake of terrorist threats.

Our correspondent covering the Election Commission reports that the Election Commission meeting will finalise security arrangements for the election campaigning and polling to ensure that all political parties would be able to do campaigning without the fear of terrorist threats.

In Punjab, Pakistan Musliom League Nawaz - Nawaz (PML-N) and Pakistan Tehrik-i-Insaaf (PTI) are holding rallies while in other provinces political parties are forced to hold corner meetings instead of rallies.

MQM had shut down its campaign offices after an attack in Karachi that left at least four of its workers killed.

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