PESHAWAR/ISLAMABAD: The Caretaker Chief Minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), Justice (retd) Syed Arshad Hussain, was briefed on the security status of polling stations for the upcoming 2024 general elections. Out of a total of 15,737 polling stations across the province, 4,812 have been identified as the most sensitive.
During a significant meeting chaired by the chief minister, attendees included Inspector General of Police (IGP) Akhtar Hayat Khan Gandapur, Additional Chief Secretary Home Muhammad Abid Majeed, provincial ministers, and other relevant officials.
The caretaker chief minister learned that 6,581 polling stations were categorized as sensitive, 4,344 as normal, and an additional 1,919 would be set up in snow-bound areas of the province.
For the first time, the general elections for national and provincial assemblies are set to occur simultaneously in both settled and merged districts of the province. A total of 45 general seats for the National Assembly and 115 general seats for the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly will be contested.
The authorities disclosed that the province has a total of 21,692,381 registered voters. Regarding security arrangements, it was detailed that 11 security personnel would be stationed at each most sensitive polling station in the southern belt and merged districts, while seven would be deployed in the rest of the districts.
In the merged and southern districts, seven security personnel would be assigned to each sensitive polling station, and four security personnel to each normal polling station.
The chief minister emphasized the commitment of the provincial government to ensuring peaceful, fair, and transparent general elections. He directed commissioners, RPOs, deputy commissioners, and DPOs to implement the government’s plans and decisions effectively. Compliance with the instructions and code of conduct issued by the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) was stressed at all levels.
Justice (retd) Syed Arshad Hussain affirmed the utilization of all available machinery and resources for conducting free, fair, and peaceful general elections in the province.
