Pakistan Suspends Mobile Services To Secure Voting

Pakistan has temporarily suspended mobile phone services across the country and closed some land borders to maintain law and order as voting began in a national election that has been preceded by a surge in militant violence.

In the most recent such incidents, 26 people were killed in two explosions near electoral candidates’ offices in the southwestern province of Balochistan on Wednesday. Islamic State later claimed responsibility.

Report says the election is also being held amid a deep economic crisis and in a highly polarised political environment, and many analysts believe no clear winner may emerge.

Thousands of troops have been deployed at polling stations across the country and borders with Iran and Afghanistan were temporarily closed to facilitate a peaceful election.

“As a result of the recent incidents of terrorism in the country precious lives have been lost, security measures are essential to maintain the law and order situation and deal with possible threats,” the interior ministry said in a message on X.

The move to suspend mobile networks sparked criticism from leaders of opposition parties, with the Pakistan Peoples Party’s Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, the 35-year-old son of former premier Benazir Bhutto, calling for its “immediate restoration”.

“I have asked my party to approach both ECP (Election Commission of Pakistan) and the courts for this purpose,” he posted on messaging platform X.

Meanwhile, Chief Election Commissioner, Sikandar Sultan Raja said the decision on mobile networks was made by “law and order agencies” following Wednesday’s violence and the commission would not interfere in the matter.

Jailed former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, in a post on X, called on people to remove passwords from their personal Wifi accounts “so anyone in the vicinity can have access to internet on this extremely important day.”

Some voters also expressed anger at the move to suspend mobile services.

“Due to this, the communication with voters and others are very difficult … we are facing so many problems due to the internet closure,” said 50-year-old Mehmood Chaudry, a school teacher who cast his vote in the city of Rawalpindi.

Despite tightened security, one person was killed when gunmen opened fire on a security forces vehicle in the northwestern area of Tank, a source in the intelligence services said.

There was no immediate confirmation from security forces.

Grenade attacks were also reported in different parts of Balochistan’s Kech district but polling remained unaffected since there were no casualties, Saeed Ahmed Umrani, commissioner of the Makran division, told newsmen.

The network suspension also follows Imran Khan’s call to his supporters, who had clashed with security forces while protesting his arrest last year, to wait outside polling booths until results are announced.

Khan cast his vote via postal ballot from a prison in Rawalpindi on Thursday morning, his party’s media team said.

REUTERS/Christopher Ojilere