HYDERABAD: Pakistan Peo­ples Party (PPP) election cell in-charge Taj Haider, a former senator, on Tuesday urged the chief election commissioner (CEC) to withdraw the notification about deployment of army personnel inside polling stations during the polling for PS-86 Johi by-election in Dadu district.

The polling is scheduled for Nov 7.

In a communication sent to the CEC, Mr Haider said that according to the notification, army would be posted inside and outside polling stations in the forthcoming by-election.

He noted that army personnel were said to have been given magisterial powers. He said: “PPP wishes to convey its strongest reservations over issuance of [the] notification”.

The senior PPP leader contended that in the background of “massive rigging” in the 2018 general elections where, according to him, 95 per cent of Forms-45 could not be signed by polling agents of candidates because of their being thrown out of polling stations bef­ore vote count, “all opposition parties have unanimously demanded army personnel should not be pos­ted either inside or outside polling stations”.

Taj Haider said that the nation had given tremendous sacrifices for the return of democracy and sanctity of vote. “We as a nation stand determined to safeguard these gains. Civilian law enforcing agencies put at disposal of presiding officers are fully capable of controlling any untoward situation should it, God forbid, occur at any polling station,” he said.

He said that parliament through legislation had given ECP the powers to punish election officials or voter if he/she was found guilty of any misconduct. The powers given to ECP under Section 9 of the Election Act 2017 extend to declaring polling at any polling station or elections in any constituency as a whole void if ECP was not satisfied with fairness of conduct of elections.

In this background and under present peaceful conditions, it was not at all advisable to make armed forces controversial by being assigned duties in a purely civilian domain, he said.

The PPP leader said the notification by implication expressed mistrust at officials and personnel of law enforcing agencies belonging to Sindh.

“It adds to many grievances of people of Sindh who [have] recently seen case against [former] president Zardari being transferred from Karachi to Rawalpindi against legal norms and practices.”

He claimed that unfortunately, a perception existed that while federation welcomed unconstitutional use of fiscal and natural resources of Sindh, its people and elected representatives were discriminated against. He said that PPP had all along struggled against centrifugal elements in national politics and against extremism of any kind.

“Perceptions of discrimination harm our national unity. Negative perceptions about discrimination can only be dissipated by creating an environment of mutual trust, fairness and justice. Use or threat of use of force only fortifies these negative perceptions. We assure ECP our fullest cooperation in conduct of fair elections,” he concluded.

Published in Dawn, November 6th, 2019