Provincial Election Commissioner Ejaz Anwar Chauhan on Monday said that the local government election would be held in Sindh in two phases and the first phase will be held on June 26 in 14 districts of Sukkur, Larkana, Shaheed Benazirabad and of Mirpurkhas divisions.
He was sharing his views at a meeting chaired by Sindh Chief Secretary Dr. Muhammad Sohail Rajput at Sindh Secretariat. He said that around 21,298 contestants would participate in the first phase of the local bodies’ election in Sindh while more than 25 million ballot papers had been printed for the purpose. Chauhan said that the participants of the meeting also decided to deploy Rangers and police as well as to install CCTV cameras at 2,980 highly sensitive polling.
He further said that orders had also been issued to HESCO and SEPCO to ensure smooth power supply on the occasion. Chauhan said that the election commission had taken notice of the incident of NA-240. In the meeting, the chief secretary, Sindh and other participants, while making deliberations on the matters of local body elections in Sindh, reviewed the necessary arrangements including the security plan.
Sindh Police chief Ghulam Nabi Memon, Sindh Home Secretary Saeed Ahmed Mangreejo, Commissioner Karachi Muhammad Iqbal Memon, Secretary Local Government Syed Najam Ahmed Shah and others were also in attendance while the divisional commissioner and the deputy inspector general of police participated through video link. The chief secretary Sindh said that the government of Sindh would provide all necessary facilities to the election commission for the peaceful conduct of local body elections.
While instructing all the divisional commissioners, he said that the missing facilities at the polling stations should be completed in two days. He said that necessary facilities, including provision of water for the voters as well as ramp for the disabled persons, should be arranged. The chief secretary assured the provincial election commissioner that security and other arrangements would be made for the elections. Chief Secretary Dr. Mohammed Sohail Rajput reviewed security arrangements for the local government elections in the province.
Meanwhile, the nomination papers of the PTI candidate and close aide of former chief minister Sindh Dr. Arbab Ghulam Rahim, Zia Reham Dal have been rejected by RO in Tando Bago town of Badin district on Monday. The returning officer rejected the nomination papers of Dal, who was contesting local bodies’ elections from union council Dei town as a member of district council without any specific reason.
Addressing a press conference at Tando Bago Press Club, Dal and others alleged that he wanted to contest the election against a close aide of Asif Ali Zardari, Raees Qabool Mohammad Khatian from his native town but his forms were rejected on flimsy grounds. “The forms of the PTI candidates are being rejected in Badin district and other districts on the pressure of the PPP leadership,” he claimed while challenging Khatian to come openly to contest the election against him instead of pressuring the RO and other officials.
