Date:18/02/2008 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2008/02/18/stories/2008021859920100.htm

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Pakistan goes to polls amid fear of violence

Nirupama Subramanian

Over 80,000 Army, paramilitary troops for security

— Photo: AFP

Gearing up: Security officials receive instructions before deployment for poll duty in Lahore on Sunday.

ISLAMABAD: A tense quiet descended over Pakistan a day before the country was to vote in a crucial election on Monday, with fears of suicide blasts, poll-related violence and rigging topping voters’ concerns and threatening to affect the turnout.

Saturday’s suicide attack in the north-west tribal area of Parachinar, in which the death toll rose to 47 overnight, underlined the widespread security apprehensions that have dominated these elections from before the start of the process, but particularly after the killing of PPP leader Benazir Bhutto on December 27.

The fears remain despite a blanket deployment of more than 80,000 troops from the Pakistan Army and paramilitary forces across the country and assurances from President Pervez Musharraf and the Chief Election Commissioner, Justice (retd.) Qazi Muhammed Farooq, that no one will be allowed to disrupt the election process.

In Karachi Rangers and police have been deployed at all polling stations, and troops are on standby to prevent violence.

Monday’s battle is for 272 National Assembly seats. Elections in three parliamentary constituencies have been postponed – in Larkana on account of Benazir Bhutto’s death, in a constituency in Lahore again due to the death of a candidate, and in South Waziristan due to the tense situation prevailing in the area. Elections are also being held simultaneously for 570 seats in the four provincial assemblies.

Punjab is the largest province with 148 parliamentary constituencies. Sindh has 61, North West Frontier Province 35 and Balochistan 16. The Federally Administered Tribal Areas send 12 parliamentarians. In addition, there are 70 reserved seats, distributed to parties on the basis of their performance. Out of these 60 are reserved for women and 10 for minorities.

In all, 2,234 candidates are contesting the election for the parliamentary seats, while 5,017 candidates are in the fray for the provincial elections. Two opinion polls by U.S.-based organisations have placed the PPP and the Pakistan Muslim League (N) far ahead of the Pakistan Muslim League (Q), which came to power after the 2002 elections but analysts are saying the election is too fraught with uncertainties to make an accurate prediction.

One uncertainty is the extent of the proBenazir sympathy wave for the PPP. Another is the impact of Nawaz Sharif’s return and whether it has divided or consolidated Opposition votes.