A group of people allegedly belong to JUI-F in Atal Sharif area of the Tank district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Dera Ismail Khan bribed voters and doled out cash to them to ensure they cast ballots for their favor candidate, local media reported on Monday.
It is worth mentioning that the re-polling was scheduled on six polling stations of NA-43, Tank-cum-Dera Ismail Khan as on February 8, the polling did not take place at these polling stations due to the deteriorating situation of law and order.
A total of 5438 voters are registered to cast their votes in these six polling stations including five in Kulachi Tehsil of Dera Ismail Khan and one in Tank district.
ٹانک این اے 43
اٹل شریف
جمیعت والے سرے عام خریدوفروخت جاری فی ووٹ 15 ہزار روپے ،، الیکشن کمشنر آف پاکستان نوٹس لیںہیلو @ECP_Pakistan زندہ ہو pic.twitter.com/vF8r0sJYm8
— ???????????????????? ???????????????????????? (@Lalika79) February 19, 2024
As re-polling proceeded in Tank amidst incidents of violence at a polling station, reports emerged indicating rampant malpractice.
Sources revealed that individual votes in Atal Sharif were allegedly being traded for sums as high as Rs15,000. Video footage from MM News depicted transactions where men received money for escorting women voters to the polling booths. Shockingly, these activities were brazenly conducted in broad daylight without any apparent oversight from authorities.
The footage further showed men lining up to exchange their votes for monetary compensation. In response to the deteriorating law and order situation, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) decided to suspend the polling process in six polling stations on February 8. However, polling is slated to resume in these stations until 5 pm.
As of now, the ECP has not issued any official statement addressing the allegations of vote-buying.
