Security forces were on their top state of alert Sunday, as fresh violence erupted on the eve of elections. Monday's vote has been overshadowed by the slaying of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto in December and by a subsequent wave of violence, including a suicide attack on her supporters on Saturday that left 47 dead.
'I assure you that the electoral process will be free and fair and transparent,' says CEC Qazi Farooq. Allegations that the parliamentary polls will be rigged have also raised tensions in the nuclear-armed nation and among its foreign backers, but authorities pledged that the vote would be trouble-free.
"I assure you that the electoral process will be free and fair and transparent," Pakistan's chief election commissioner, Qazi Farooq, said in a statement broadcast on state television.
"Strict action will be taken if anybody tries to rig or disrupt the elections process." The government has deployed 500,000 security personnel for the vote, including 81,000 troops, interior ministry spokesman Brigadier Javed Cheema told AFP. "Security forces are on highest alert for the smooth and peaceful conduct of the polls," he said. Attacks in the run-up to the elections have killed nearly 150 people, while the claims of rigging in favour of Musharraf's allies have also helped destabilise the country of 160 million people.