Pakistan Elections 2024: Videos of Polling 'Malpractices' Flood Internet | WATCH

Karachi – A day after Pakistan conducted its highly anticipated General Elections amid major political turmoil, multiple videos of “malpractices” during the polling circulated online. As the initial counting comes up in the highly contested polls come up with major surprises, several prominent parties contesting in the elections have alleged that the polls are being rigged. The matter became worse after the authorities suspended mobile and internet services across the country which also led to a major delay in the announcement of the initially “unconfirmed” results.

According to Pakistani news outlet Dawn News, the Pakistan People's Party (PPP) claimed that “goons” are snatching ballot papers from the electoral staff in the PS-105 (Karachi East-IX) constituency. The Jamaat-e-Islami party (JI) also put out similar allegations. JI alleged that MQM-P workers sabotaged the voting process across multiple polling stations. Not only this, the member of Imran Khan's Pakistan Tehreek e Insaaf also shared a video from Greenland public school in Karachi, where masked men caused a rampage in the polling stations. In another video shared online, five men can be seen causing a ruckus in a polling station in the NA-248 constituency. 

ECP takes notice of the attacks 

Meanwhile, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) said that it had taken notice of numerous attacks on the polling station. In light of this, the electoral watchdog ordered the returning officer concerned to take immediate action against the PPP candidate Qadir Khan Mandokhail, who was seen kicking down the door and storming into a polling station while holding a ballot paper. According to Dawn, the ECP is planning to pursue the case under Section 196 of the Elections Act. 

Under the aforementioned sections, offences such as attacking a polling station or booth, disturbing the polling process, snatching ballot boxes or papers, and attempting to intimidate the polling staff are punishable under the law. Earlier today, Senior PPP leader Sherry Rehman claimed that the election results of Lahore’s constituency were manipulated. The seat she was talking about was where party chief   Bilawal Bhutto Zardari lost polls to Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz's (PML-N) Attaullah Tarar. Addressing a press conference on Friday, Rehman noted that results were changed abruptly while Bilawal was leading in the polls. Rehman also lamented the disruption of mobile and internet services. Overall, as the results start pouring in, the accusation of rigged elections remains persistent.