Pakistan Army top brass discusses deployment of military during February 8 elections

On Wednesday, the Pakistan Army’s top brass talked about deploying the armed forces to help the electoral commission oversee the peaceful conduct of the elections scheduled for February 8. As Pakistan gets ready for the general elections, tensions are rising and there have already been multiple instances of violence during polling places throughout the nation. “Pakistan Army will perform assigned duties as per the Constitutional mandate, under the guidelines of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP). No one would be allowed to indulge in violence in the name of political activity and sabotage the quintessential democratic exercise of conduct of free and fair elections,” according to a statement issued by the army. The 262nd Corps Commanders’ Conference, which was hosted at the GHS Rawalpindi, was where the conversation took place. The conference was chaired by General Asim Munir, the Chief of Army Staff (COAS). Earlier in the day, unidentified gunmen opened fire randomly at a polling campaign rally in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Siddiq Abad Phatak Bazar Main Chowk area, killing a leader of the jailed former prime minister Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) party. The candidate was running as an independent from the Bajaur constituency for a seat in the National Assembly. Three of his supporters were also injured. Violent confrontations broke out in Karachi’s Nazimanad neighborhood on Monday, killing one employee of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM Pakistan) and injuring three others during a gunfight with PPP employees. At least 25 people, including several police officers, were hurt on Sunday, the day before, when large police contingents attacked, shot tear gas canisters, and forcibly dispersed a PTI party election gathering in Karachi’s Clifton neighborhood. The meeting on Wednesday also decided to use all of the state’s resources to combat terrorists as well as those who assist and encourage them. The gathering also reaffirmed the unwavering support for Palestine and the Gazanian people while acknowledging the conflict’s grave consequences and its propensity to spread throughout the whole region. The statement added that everyone agreed that there was an urgent need for a long-term truce and a resolution to the Palestinian issue. (With agency inputs)