LAHORE: The first phase of the much-delayed local body polls gets under way in Punjab on Saturday with more than 20 million voters going to elect their representatives for the third tier of government.

Twelve districts — Lahore, Faisal­abad, Nankana Sahib, Gujrat, Bhakkar, Chakwal, Kasur, Pakpattan, Okara, Vehari, Lodhran and Bahawalnager — are included in the first phase of the electoral bout, which has been delayed since 2009 for one reason or the other.

There are two major contestants, the ruling PML-N and opposition PTI, whereas candidates of the JI, PML-Q, PAT, MQM, JUP, JUI and other smaller groups, besides a large number of independents, are also in the run.

The PML-N leadership believes that the independents will give it a tougher time than the PTI as scores of Leaguers who have been denied party tickets are also contesting independently.

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The situation is particularly interesting in Faisalabad where Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s relative and Minister of State for Water and Power Abid Sher Ali’s father Chaudhry Sher Ali is leading a group of disgruntled workers against candidates backed by Punjab Law Minister Rana Sanaullah.

In Lahore, the Leaguers are contesting against each other in at least 47 union councils out of 274, giving sleepless nights to the leaders because the city is considered a citadel of the ruling party and the infighting means division of the vote bank to the PTI’s advantage.

A total of 40,101 candidates are in the run in 1,578 union councils and 1,118 wards of 60 municipal committees, while 774 have been elected unopposed.

As many as 16,266 polling stations have been set up, of which 3,551 have been declared highly sensitive and 8,300 sensitive.

Various parties, including the PML-N, in a meeting with provincial election authorities demanded deployment of army and the Rangers to maintain peace, recalling the example of the recent NA-122 by-polls, but they were not obliged.

The ECP says the army will be called in only when the situation so requires and the administration and police will run the show on their own.

Two people have died in election-related violence between activists of the PML-N and PTI in Lahore, while clashes have been reported, some between charged political workers and police, in various areas.

As a precautionary measure, the government has imposed Section 144 for three days in the districts where the elections are being held, banning carrying and display of even licensed weapons. Warnings of strict action are being issued through the media against violation of the ban.

According to a spokesman for the ECP, they have got printed over 35 million ballot papers and they, along with other paraphernalia, including emergency lights for use in case of loadshedding, have been handed over to 16,266 presiding officers appointed to conduct the polls.

The polling time has been increased from nine to 10 hours, commencing at 7.30am and continuing till 5.30pm, without break.

Published in Dawn, October 31st, 2015

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