PTI alleges pre-poll rigging in Gilgit-Baltistan elections, raises concerns over security deployment

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) on Saturday accused the federal government and the Gilgit-Baltistan administration of engaging in “pre-poll rigging” ahead of the region’s elections, citing the deployment of thousands of additional security personnel and what it described as systematic efforts to suppress the party’s electoral campaign.

Polling in Gilgit-Baltistan is scheduled for Sunday, June 7, following a four-month postponement attributed to severe winter conditions. In the run-up to the elections, major political parties, including the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), have intensified campaign activities across the region.

Addressing a press conference, PTI Information Secretary Sheikh Waqas Akram claimed that the deployment of more than 13,000 security personnel from outside Gilgit-Baltistan, in addition to the region’s 5,600 local police officers, was excessive and politically motivated.

According to Akram, the additional force includes 11,000 personnel from Punjab Police, 1,000 from Sindh Police, 700 Frontier Constabulary officials and 140 Islamabad Police officers. He alleged that the deployment was intended to influence the electoral process rather than maintain public order.

“This overwhelming presence of external forces far exceeds the security requirements of a population of approximately 900,000 and raises serious concerns about the transparency of the electoral process,” he said.

The PTI leader further alleged that communication networks, including internet services and landlines, had been disrupted in parts of Gilgit-Baltistan, hindering coordination among party workers and supporters. He also claimed that several PTI activists had been detained in recent days despite growing public support for PTI candidates.

Akram accused authorities of employing a range of tactics to undermine the party’s electoral prospects, including pressuring legislators to defect, restricting campaign activities, and creating obstacles for PTI-backed candidates.

He also alleged that a proposed electoral alliance between PTI and the Gilgit-Baltistan Democratic Party was disrupted when the latter’s election symbol was reportedly withdrawn at the last moment without formal notification from election authorities.

The PTI maintained that polling arrangements had been manipulated to disadvantage its candidates and claimed that postal ballots for party supporters had been blocked on questionable grounds, while candidates from rival parties faced no such restrictions.

“Rallies have been curtailed, political activities restricted, and PTI workers subjected to undue pressure. These actions undermine democratic principles and the people’s right to freely choose their representatives,” Akram asserted.

The party called upon the international community, human rights organisations and democratic institutions to take notice of what it termed violations of political and electoral rights in Gilgit-Baltistan.

Separately, PTI also expressed concern over the Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) government’s decision to declare the Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC) a proscribed organisation.

In a statement, the party argued that political and constitutional grievances should be addressed through dialogue and democratic engagement rather than through bans and coercive measures.

“If the organisation was genuinely considered a security threat, the government would not have engaged in prolonged negotiations with its leadership or accepted several of its demands in the past,” the statement said.

The PTI contended that the move reflected a broader pattern of suppressing dissent and peaceful political activity, drawing parallels with what it described as similar actions taken against the party and its founder, Imran Khan.

The party warned that efforts to curtail democratic freedoms would not diminish public support for PTI or prevent voters from expressing their political preferences through the ballot box.