Pakistan goes to the polls after bloody election eve
Millions of Pakistanis vote on Thursday in an election marred by violence that has killed dozens, allegations of pre-poll rigging, and the jailing of the country's most popular politician, Imran Khan. Pollsters have predicted a low turnout from the country's 128 million eligible voters following a lacklustre election campaign overshadowed by the hobbling of Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party by the military-led establishment. The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) is expected to win the most seats in Thursday's vote, with analysts saying its 74-year-old founder Nawaz Sharif has won the blessing of the generals. On Wednesday, at least 28 people were killed and more than 30 wounded by two bomb blasts outside the offices of candidates in southwestern Pakistan, in attacks that were claimed hours later by the Islamic State group. But authorities insisted violence would not interrupt voting. "Every effort to sabotage the situation of peace and security will be thwarted," caretaker prime minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar said following the blasts. The foreign ministry said the land borders with neighbours Iran and Afghanistan would be closed to all traffic on Thursday as a security measure. The election figures are staggering in the nuclear-armed nation of 240 million people – the world's fifth most populous. Nearly 18,000 candidates are standing for seats in the national and four provincial assemblies, with 266 seats directly contested in the former – an additional 70 reserved for women and minorities – and 749 places in the regional parliaments. Thursday's election has a similar air to the 2018 poll, but with the tables turned. Then, it was Nawaz Sharif who was disqualified from running because of a string of convictions for graft, while Khan swept to power with the backing of the military, as well as genuine support. Unlike last poll however, the opposition has had its election symbol banned – removing PTI from the ballot box altogether and forcing PTI-selected candidates to run as independents. Last week Khan, a former international cricketer who led Pakistan to victory in the World Cup in 1992, was sentenced to lengthy jail terms for treason, graft and an illegal marriage. Analysts say the character assassination shows how worried the military is that PTI-selected candidates could still prove a decisive factor in Thursday's vote. (AFP)