SIALKOT, Aug 17: Hundreds of people, including women, children, patients and daily wage-earners, had to face hardship for the third consecutive day on Wednesday as the public transport has been impounded for election.

The people remained stranded on various bus and wagon stands in Sialkot, Daska, Bhopalwala, Sambrial, Uggoki, Pasrur and other areas in the hot and humid weather due to impounding of the public transport vehicles by the district administration.

The impounded vehicles remained busy in transporting the polling staff, ballot boxes, ballot papers and other polling-related material to all the 1,315 polling stations in district.

The affected people criticized the district government for impounding transport.

Taking advantage of this situation, the drivers of motorcycle rickshaws, tractor-trolleys and trucks continued to charge inflated fares from the passengers, while the traffic police gave a free hand to such elements.

The traffic police also impounded the vehicles of factories due to which thousands of industrial workers could not reach their workplaces.

Sialkot Chamber of Commerce and Industry vice-president Shafiqur Rehman said in a press release owing to impounding of factories’ vehicles, most of the workers remained absent causing huge financial losses to the industry and exporters. He demanded release of the vehicles impounded by the traffic police.

ARMY FLAG MARCH: The army troops on Wednesday held a flag march in the district’s sensitive areas including those in Sialkot, Daska, Sambrial and Pasrur tehsils to ensure a peaceful environment during the polling.

DCO Shafqat Ranjha told journalists that the army had been called out in the district for ensuring peace and maintaining law and order on the eve of local polls.

The district administration and Election Commission had chalked out a plan for holding free, fair and transparent polls, he added.

POLLING DAY: The stage is set to hold local polls in all 124 union councils in Sialkot on Aug 18 (today) under the army’s control.

As the ruling PML is divided into five groups here, the candidates backed by these groups are making tall claimsabout their victory.

The PML groups in the district are led by the National Assembly Speaker Chaudhry Ameer Hussain, former district nazim Mian Naeem Javaid, Punjab Industries Minister Muhammad Ajmal Cheema, Federal Parliamentary Secretary for Cabinet Division Dr Fardous Ashiq and Akhtar Variyo.

Meanwhile, the local leaders of other political parties, including PML-N, PPP and MMA, are also claiming to give a tough time to the PML groups in the district.

The candidates backed by opposition parties are accusing the government of pre-poll rigging as they allege that the entire government machinery has remained busy in the election campaigns of the candidates backed by the ruling party.

GOVERNOR’S VISIT: Punjab Governor Khalid Maqbool will inspect the polling process at various polling stations in Daska and Sialkot cities.

He will also meet different delegations during his visit.