The caretaker prime minister of Pakistan has told reporters there is no attempt to “target a specific party or group” amid claims of pre-poll rigging and candidate harassment.
Speaking on the eve of the election, Anwaar ul Haq Kakar did acknowledge they couldn’t totally guarantee free and fair elections.
“Absolute is a very relative term and it’s a very subjective term,” he said.
“What I can assure you is that despite all our shortcomings and flaws which there are in the system, there is no systematic pattern or institutional pattern where we are targeting a specific party or group.”
It comes as people have begun casting their ballots in the country’s highly-charged election – the build-up to which has been marred by violence and claims of fraud.
On the eve of Thursday’s election, bombs struck two political offices in southwestern Pakistan, killing at least 30 people.
Tens of thousands of police and paramilitary forces have been deployed at polling stations to ensure security.
Mobile phone services cut
Mr Kakar had said late last night that he had “no intention” of shutting down internet services.
But this morning his government did exactly that, cutting mobile phone services across the country, citing “recent incidents of terrorism in the country”.
Pakistan’s chief election commissioner Sikandar Sultan Raja told Sky News that “whenever they feel like there is no problem as far as security is concerned, it will be on”.
Some analysts suggest the suspended mobile phone services will have an impact on turnout.
Many in the country have said the military is pulling the strings in this election – with Nawaz Sharif being their favoured candidate.
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