Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) leader Nadeem Afzal Chan on Sunday alleged that attempts were being made to hand over power in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) through unfair electoral practices, expressing concern over the transparency of the second phase of the Legislative Assembly elections.
In a statement, Chan claimed that polling staff and election materials failed to reach several constituencies on time, disrupting the voting process.
He said the PPP had submitted more than 15 complaints to the relevant authorities and warned that it would be difficult to regard the elections as free, fair and transparent unless the reported issues were addressed.
“We don’t intend to boycott the election but want change through the ballot,” he said.
Chan further alleged that the polls appeared to be turning into an “ultra Form 47 election,” referring to the controversial election result forms.
Meanwhile, polling continued across 21 constituencies in the second phase of the AJK elections, including nine constituencies in Muzaffarabad Division and 12 refugee constituencies.
According to election officials, 802 candidates are contesting the nine Muzaffarabad seats, while 143 candidates are in the race for the 12 refugee constituencies. Voting is scheduled to continue until 5:00pm, with Kashmiri refugees casting ballots at polling stations across Pakistan, including in Karachi and Lahore.