Former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan has urged his supporters to maintain a presence outside polling stations after casting their votes in the forthcoming elections. This call for vigilance comes amidst a backdrop of large-scale rallies by rival parties, marking the culmination of the election campaign period.
As Pakistan braces for the polls on Thursday, the arrest of the nationally revered Khan, victor of the previous elections, has overshadowed pressing issues like the economic downturn facing the nation. Concerns are mounting over potential tensions at polling stations due to allegations of a military-backed suppression campaign against Khan and his party, a claim the military firmly denies.
Khan’s message, disseminated through the social media platform X, emphasized the importance of peaceful assembly outside the Returning Officer’s offices until final results are declared. Accompanying his call to action was a rare photograph of Khan clad in simple black attire, its origins and timing unclear. Amid restricted campaigning, Khan’s communications have often reached his followers via AI-generated audios or notes relayed by his legal representatives after prison visits.
Paramilitary soldiers stand guard along a road, ahead of the general elections in Karachi, Pakistan February 7, 2024.
Meanwhile, electoral activities for other political entities concluded on Tuesday night, adhering to Pakistani electoral mandates that bar campaigning a day before elections. Nawaz Sharif, leading the electoral race, rallied a vast assembly in Kasur, alongside his brother, Shehbaz Sharif, the former Prime Minister and current candidate for the constituency. Sharif appealed to the nation’s youth, a demographic historically swayed by Khan, cautioning them against support for the jailed leader.
In the south, the Pakistan People’s Party, under Bilawal Bhutto Zardari’s leadership, congregated in Larkana. Bhutto Zardari, the progeny of the slain Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto and a former foreign minister himself, could emerge as a crucial figure in coalition formations should the elections not yield a clear victor. He criticized rivals, including Sharif, for purportedly undermining national security and economic stability.
