Rana Sanaullah fears clashes during LG polls in Karachi

• Rana Sanaullah raised concerns over violence during the LG elections
• He said differences between political parties have taken a worrying situation
• He said miscreants can take advantage of the situation and create chaos

ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Interior Rana Sanaullah has expressed concerns over violence during the Local Government (LG) elections being held in Karachi and Hyderabad.

In a series of tweets, the interior minister said the differences between the political parties on holding the local bodies elections have taken a worrying turn. He said two political parties are in favour of conducting the polls and two are against it and the situation could escalate.

Rana Sanaullah expressed concern and said in the current situation, there is a fear of conflict or violence if the polls are held. He said miscreants can take advantage and create a law and order situation.

He said even a minor incident can lead to a major accident in Karachi and Hyderabad. The minister further urged political parties and others to show understanding and defuse the atmosphere of tension through dialogue.

He said the election commission and the judiciary should take notice of the seriousness of the situation. He added that an appropriate solution should be found in the light of the law and constitution.

The Sindh government has once again urged the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) to postpone the LG polls citing security threats.

In a letter to the election commission, the Sindh government requested to postpone LG polls as the Army and Rangers personnel required for elections were not available. The provincial government refused to provide security at ‘sensitive’ polling station.

The ECP turned down the request to once again delay polls and ruled that the local bodies elections will be held as per schedule.

It directed Interior Ministry to ensure the deployment of Rangers and Army on highly sensitive polling stations. The Sindh government eventually announced to hold the polls as scheduled.

Amid the security situation, the Ministry of Interior ordered deployment of Frontier Constabulary (FC) troops outside all highly sensitive and sensitive polling stations during elections in Karachi, Hyderabad and Thatta divisions.

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