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ISLAMABAD: The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Saturday said that it suspected results of 20 polling stations had been falsified in the by-election for the NA-75 (Daska) constituency.
In a statement, the commission said results of the NA-75 constituency were received with unnecessary delay and it had tried to contact the presiding officers several times with no success.
It said the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) tried to contact the Inspector General of Police (IGP), commissioner and deputy commissioner on receiving information from the district returning officer (DRO) and returning officer (RO) to ascertain the whereabouts of the presiding officers concerned but received no response.
The chief election commissioner also contacted the Punjab chief secretary who assured him that the results would be sent after tracing the missing officers and polling bags. The election commission said the presiding officers appeared along with the polling bags around six in the morning.
“The DRO and RO of the NA-75 (Sialkot) constituency informed that there is a suspicion of falsification in the results from 20 polling stations. Therefore, it is not possible to release the initial results without a complete inquiry. The DRO is sending a complete report on the matter to the Election Commission,” it added.
The statement said the ECP had stopped the DRO and RO from announcing the initial results for the by-election and directed them to conduct a complete inquiry and identify those responsible.
The provincial election commissioner and joint provincial election commissioner have been instructed to reach the office of the DRO and RO so that the records can be completely protected. It said the matter is a result of the weakness of the administration and law enforcement agencies.
The by-election in the NA-75 constituency has been marred by violence. A day earlier, at least two people were killed and three others injured in a firing incident at a polling station in Daska.
